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Commerce Insurance

Keystone makes donation to Bay Path as part of Commerce Insurance program.

DONATION TO BAY PATH – On Wednesday March 16, Keystone/LKQ donated $1,000 in tools to Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School as part of MAPFRE | Commerce Insurance’s “C.A.R.E.S. in the Community” program.  Bay Path students along with their teachers hand-picked tools and supplies they needed from the Keystone Catalog.  These tools will be used in the repair of the two vehicles donated by Commerce Insurance.  The automobiles will be raffled off in the spring, with proceeds going to Bay Path and three other area schools. In photo with Bay Path students, from left to right, are: Jeremy Guay, Assistant Vocational Director at Bay Path; Paul Folino of LKQ / Keystone Automotive Industries; Dave Papagni, Bay Path Superintendent Director; Ray Beck, Auto Collision Repair Teacher; and Christine Packard and Cathy Peterson, Commerce Insurance

Keystone makes donation to Bay Path as part of Commerce Insurance program.Read More

Commerce C.A.R.E.S.…Commerce Insurance donates automobiles to area school for repair and raffle as part of “C.A.R.E.S in the Community” program.

Toyota Camry presently being repaired by Bay Path students as part of Commerce Insurance’s “C.A.R.E.S in the Community” program.

WEBSTER, MASSACHUSETTS…

Commerce Insurance’s, a Division of MAPFRE USA, “C.A.R.E.S in the Community” program is reaching out to new drivers about safe driving practices as well as providing opportunities for vocational technical students to improve their auto body repair skills. A most recent effort of the C.A.R.E.S. in the Community program features the donation of a 2010 Toyota Camry to be repaired by Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School in Charlton, Massachusetts.

The vehicle has been repaired by students at Bay Path in conjunction with Long Subaru Webster, MA.  The repaired vehicle will be raffled and the proceeds from the raffle will benefit Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School.   According to Jeremy A. Guay, Assistant Vocational Director, the money raised will go toward funding new lighting for the school’s athletic field. 

Local businesses have been an integral part of the C.A.R.E.S. in the Community program. One local business, Long Subaru, has provided their facility and experienced technicians to assist in the structural repair process.   This allows the students the educational experience to observe the repair process in an actual working environment.

In addition to Long Subaru, Boch Collision Center of Norwood and Harr Auto Body in Worcester, have generously contributed parts and labor to the C.A.R.E. S. in the Community program totaling nearly $22,000.

Tickets are on sale for $5.00 each or three for $10.00.

Tickets are available for purchase through March 18, 2011 at the following locations:

Dudley, MA

  • Dudley Police Department, 71 West Main Street
  • New Lakeside & Dudley Ins. Agency, 12 Airport Road
  • O’Connor & Co. Insurance Agency, Inc., 16 Village Street
  • Edwin J. Stochaj Insurance Agency, Inc., 93 West Main Street

Charlton, MA

  • Anastasi Insurance Agency, Inc., 4 Brookfield Road
  • Bair Insurance Agency, 6 Main Street
  • Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School, 57 Old Muggett Hill Road
  • Oxford Insurance Agency, Inc., 5 Masonic Road

Oxford, MA

  • Oxford Insurance Agency, Inc., 300 Main Street 

Sturbridge, MA

  • Hometown Insurance Center, LLC, 590 Main Street 

Webster, MA

  • AAA Insurance Agency, Inc., 400 Main Street
  • Tonry Northwest Insurance Agency, Inc., 281 Main Street 

For more information on the C.A.R.E.S in the Community Program, please contact Cathy Peterson.

About Commerce Insurance (a MAPFRE USA company)

MAPFRE U.S.A. Corp (formerly Commerce Group, Inc.) is the parent company of The Commerce Insurance Company and Citation Insurance Company, the leading providers of both automobile and homeowners insurance in Massachusetts.  In addition to writing business in Massachusetts, other MAPFRE U.S.A. Corp. affiliated companies actively write business in 17 states including New Hampshire, Rhode Island and Connecticut. 

MAPFRE is the largest insurer in Spain and writes business in 45 countries.  They bring a wealth of resources to Commerce including technological expertise, product knowledge, and management support, allowing Commerce Insurance to offer competitive pricing, innovative products, and strong customer service in all facets of its business.   

Commerce remains committed to improving safety and reducing traffic congestion on the roads and highways of the communities it serves. The Commerce Insurance Highway Assistance Program, the Mass Pike Highway Assistance Program, the Commerce Insurance Copter Roadway reports and the C.A.R.E.S. in the Community program are just a few ways Commerce makes the lives of the citizens of Massachusetts a little safer and easier every day.

For more information, please visit www.commerceinsurance.com.

Commerce C.A.R.E.S.…Commerce Insurance donates automobiles to area school for repair and raffle as part of “C.A.R.E.S in the Community” program.Read More

Plymouth woman wins Plymouth Safe Driving campaign raffle of student-repaired Mazda 6.

Bruce King of King Collision Centers hands over the keys to a 2005 Mazda 6 to Ernie Menslage. Menslage's wife won the drawing for the auto, which was rebuilt by auto repair students from Plymouth South as part of the Plymouth Safe Driving Campaign.

PLYMOUTH, MA…

You might say Beth Menslage was having a bad week. A bad fall had landed the Pine Hills resident in the hospital with a fractured hip. While nothing will take the physical pain of her injury away, her spirits were lifted considerably when her ticket was drawn as the winner of a 2005 Mazda 6, courtesy of the Plymouth Safe Driving Campaign.

The Plymouth Safe Driving Campaign–sponsored by King Collision Centers, Commerce Insurance, Plymouth Public Schools and Plymouth Police Department—has been a yearlong effort to encourage young drivers to practice safe driving habits. Part of that campaign included a donation by Commerce Insurance of a damaged car for the auto repair students at Plymouth South’s technical studies program to repair the vehicle for a raffle. That raffle took in nearly $5,000 in proceeds, which will go back to the Plymouth Technical Studies’ SkillsUSA program.

“Mrs. Menslage is not the only winner in this drawing,” said Gary Maestas, superintendent of Plymouth Public Schools. “The students who repaired the car have received invaluable experience that they can take to the workplace with them. And the money raised by the raffle will benefit students at both Plymouth North and South high schools who want to partake in marketing, nursing, culinary and the many other programs in SkillsUSA.”

Students began work on the 2005 Mazda 6 in November 2009. Using recycled parts, the students repaired damage to the front end. In fact, the only new parts installed were the tires, brakes,  seatbelts and airbags, the latter two being requirements in a repair of this nature.

“This project had a phenomenal effect on our students,” said Chris Baker, director of Plymouth Public Schools Technical Studies. “Before this, many of them were on the fence about whether or not to pursue a career in auto repair. After working on a project like this, which is a far more sophisticated repair, a few are considering continuing their vocational training at Baran Institute.”

Ernie Menslage accepted the Mazda 6 on behalf of his wife. Mrs. Menslage purchased the winning ticket on a recent visit to Plymouth South High School to get her hair cut by the Technical Studies program’s cosmetology students. “She’s always supported the programs at the school,” added Menslage.

“Mrs. Menslage winning the Mazda 6 is the proverbial icing on the cake for the Plymouth Safe Driving Campaign,” said Bruce King, owner of King Collision Centers. “It’s wonderful that somebody who has been an active supporter of the Technical Studies programs won car.”

Continued King, “It’s even better that so many students have benefitted from the Plymouth Safe Driving Campaign, from the auto repair students to the two students who won In Control driving classes, from the students who committed to safer driving practices by signing safe driving contracts with their parents to the students who heard Ethan Morgan’s story of how your life can change forever in a second with one bad decision. The Plymouth Safe Driving Campaign has been an overall success.”

For a complete rundown of the events and activities that comprised the Plymouth Safe Driving Campaign, please visit www.plymouthsafedriving.org.

Anyone Can Remove Dents – King Collision Centers Removes Doubts

Founded in 1984 by Bruce King, King Collision Centers provides superior collision repair and extraordinary customer care to thousands of clients south of Boston. King Collision is dedicated to earning customers for life and their team of professionals help clients through the collision repair process every step of the way – from coordinating a rental vehicle; providing accurate damage appraisal; assisting with the insurance claim process and ensuring that the vehicle is returned to its pre-accident operation, safety and value.

King Collision Centers was voted “Best Collision Repair” by Market Surveys of America and they have been selected to participate in the Repair Shop Referral Programs of 20 different insurance companies.  That includes being part of Commerce Insurance’s CARES (Commerce Auto Express Repair Service) Shops, an elite program that includes approximately 120 collision shops across Massachusetts.

  
The company continues to build strategic alliances with auto dealerships, enabling dealerships to offer collision repair services on-site – similar to their alignment with Mastria Auto Group in Raynham.

King Collision Centers are located in Pembroke, Plymouth and most recently, Raynham, MA.

For more information, visit KingCollision.com or contact 508-747-2005

Plymouth woman wins Plymouth Safe Driving campaign raffle of student-repaired Mazda 6.Read More

The other side of safe driving…Fatal crash driver shares his story with Plymouth North students.

PLYMOUTH, MA…

Ten years ago, Ethan Morgan was not much different than the classroom of students he addressed last week at Plymouth North High School. That is until he got behind the wheel of a car after a party. “Buzzed” but not drunk, he turned down offers from other partygoers to drive his car home. That decision would change his life and that of a Marshfield family forever. 

As part of the Plymouth Safe Driving program, Morgan shared his odyssey, which began with his involvement in a fatal crash that took the life of a Marshfield firefighter. His journey took him down the road of alcohol and substance abuse, incarceration and rehabilitation. Clean and sober,  Morgan’s efforts are now focused on motivating young people in school and in life.

 “When I was in school, I thought everybody had a few drinks and then drove home. The truth is there are far more people who don’t do that,” said Morgan. “An automobile is a very powerful machine that can become a weapon if you’re not responsible. I wasn’t and I can never make right what happened. I wouldn’t want anyone to have to live with that.”

It was a message not lost on the students in the room, most of whom are sophomores and just beginning to learn how to drive.

“Usually our advisory sessions are a little chatty, but you could have heard a pin drop while Ethan spoke,” said Andrea Norton, a guidance counselor at Plymouth North and the advisor to Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD). “The students were engrossed by Ethan’s story and hopefully it’s one they don’t forget as they become drivers and adults.”

Added Vice Principal Derek Thompson, “This is a message our students need to hear. We have a number of fun events in the spring, most notably prom. While these activities are supposed to be fun and memorable, that can change in a heartbeat if you’re not responsible. Ethan’s talk today really hammered that home.”

The Plymouth Safe Driving program is a multi-pronged approach to promoting safe driving habits for Plymouth North and Plymouth South high schools sponsored by Plymouth Public Schools, the Plymouth Police Department, Commerce Insurance and King Collision Centers. In addition to having speakers like Morgan speak to high school students, King developed a Web site, www.plymouthsafedriving.org, offering safe driving and a safe driving contract for young drivers and their parents. The contract acts as the young driver’s pledge to drive responsibly.

Plymouth high school students who turn in a signed contract to their principal at either Plymouth North or South high school will be entered into a drawing for In Control’s Crash Prevention Training course (a $350 value).  In addition to the winner, everyone who signs a contract and submits it to their respective principal is eligible to take the In Control Crash Prevention course at a 10 percent discount.

“Ethan’s story is one well worth hearing for any driver, young or old,” said Bruce King, owner of King Collision Centers. “With this campaign, if we can help just one kid become a better driver and avoid a serious accident, it’s well, well worth it.”

For updates on latest events and activities related to this program and additional safety information, please periodically visit www.plymouthsafedriving.org. To contact Ethan Morgan about speaking for your group, please e-mail him at ethan@thelaughingcamel.com or visit www.thelaughingcamel.com.

Anyone Can Remove Dents – King Collision Centers Removes Doubts

Founded in 1984 by Bruce King, King Collision Centers provides superior collision repair and extraordinary customer care to thousands of clients south of Boston. King Collision is dedicated to earning customers for life and their team of professionals help clients through the collision repair process every step of the way – from coordinating a rental vehicle; providing accurate damage appraisal; assisting with the insurance claim process and ensuring that the vehicle is returned to its pre-accident operation, safety and value.

King Collision Centers was voted “Best Collision Repair” by Market Surveys of America and they have been selected to participate in the Repair Shop Referral Programs of 20 different insurance companies.  That includes being part of Commerce Insurance’s CARES (Commerce Auto Express Repair Service) Shops, an elite program that includes approximately 120 collision shops across Massachusetts.

The company continues to build strategic alliances with auto dealerships, enabling dealerships to offer collision repair services on-site – similar to their alignment with Mastria Auto Group in Raynham.

King Collision Centers are located in Pembroke, Plymouth and most recently, Raynham, MA. For more information, visit KingCollision.com or contact 508-747-2005

The other side of safe driving…Fatal crash driver shares his story with Plymouth North students.Read More