Supporting their community and promoting women in the auto industry
Yesterday Habitat for Humanity Nova Scotia announced Steele Auto Group’s sponsorship of Women Build 2016, an annual program where leading female business and community leaders volunteer to join thousands of women around the world to build homes for those who need a “hand up.”
“This is the second year we’ve supported this important community initiative,” said Rob Steele, President of the Steele Auto Group. “It’s always the best possible combination when we partner in a project that provides so much tangible impact in our community and at the same time, allows us to celebrate the continuing growth of the role women play in industry here in Nova Scotia.”
Since 1990, the Steele Auto Group has seen a significant increase in the number of women filling a broad spectrum of roles across its 22 dealerships in Atlantic Canada. Today, 23 per cent of its workforce is female in what has traditionally been a male-dominated industry. By providing site visits, work experiences, and job shadowing programs in partnership with organizations like the Nova Scotia Community College, and by hiring more women into apprenticeships and staff positions, Steele Auto Group now has female representation in a variety of roles including senior management. Among this year’s 10-member Women Build team representing Steele Auto Group are Service Advisors, Technicians, Warranty Administrators, Service Coordinators, Sales & Leasing Consultants, and more.
“Along with our volunteers, annual programs like Women Build are the lifeblood of our organization,” said Marie-France LeBlanc, CEO of Habitat for Humanity Nova Scotia. “It takes both volunteers and donations to build new affordable homes for our Partner Families — so a program that delivers both really helps us to complete construction. When an organization like Steele Auto Group throws their support behind us — tapping not only into their financial resources, but their employees and customers too, we know we’ve found a true partner in our cause.”
As part of their sponsorship, Steele Ford Lincoln, together with Ford Canada, is hosting a Drive 4UR Community event on Thursday, Sept. 15 from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. For every person who takes a test drive on September 15th, Ford Canada will donate $20 to Habitat for Humanity Nova Scotia, up to a maximum of $6,000. Every test drive also enters the participant, or a woman in their life, to win a spot on Steele Auto Group’s 10-member Customer Team and the opportunity to participate in Women Build 2016 on the Spryfield build site in Halifax — no construction experience necessary! Signing up is easy by visiting www.habitatns.ca.
Women Build 2016 has attracted organizations including the Nova Scotia Apprenticeship Agency, Scotiabank, Domus Realty and Irving Shipbuilding. Also, teams with names such as Dream Builders, Chicks & Mortar, and Steele Auto Stilettos, are up and running and busily raising funds in advance of the Sept. 19 build week, when they’ll take over Habitat Nova Scotia’s Halifax-area build sites and make real progress in completing two homes for new families.
Habitat for Humanity Nova Scotia’s Women Build is part of a global campaign that brings women together in the shared mission to help families in need of a hand up. A decent place to live and an affordable mortgage helps homeowners save more, invest in education, pursue opportunity and have more financial stability. The program helps Habitat Partner Families help themselves. They build their own homes alongside volunteers, creating a strong foundation for their families and their future. And strong, stable homes build strong, stable communities.