KC Cache Dash Charity Spotlight: Uplift

Founded locally in 1990, Uplift seeks to provide aid and support to the homeless community of Kansas City. They provide clothes, personal care items, and regular meal delivery service throughout the KC Metro area using a series of delivery vehicles and volunteers.

Being homeless is a difficult situation in life, and Uplift looks to make it a little less difficult. You can support Uplift in the following ways:

1.       Donate! Your monetary donation will go to fuel, vehicle maintenance, food, and supplies for homeless people right here in Kansas City. Visit www.Uplift.org to donate.

2.       Give aid! Warm jackets, shoes, clothes, and personal care items go a long way. Demand for certain items changes based on seasonal factors, so check with Uplift on what they may need.

3.       Volunteer. Uplift needs help delivering food, sorting donations, and preparing meals. Check their website for how to volunteer.

Uplift is being represented in the #KCCacheDash by #TeamLR4, driven by Aaron Thacker (@YourDp) and Alex Ogata (@Aogata). Reach out to support them on Twitter and follow their progress in the #KCCacheDash.

KC Cache Dash Charity Spotlight: Sleepyhead Beds

KC Cache Dash Charity Highlight: Sleepyhead Beds         

 

Founded several years ago by Monica Starr, Sleepyhead Beds is a Kansas City based charity that seeks to provide beds for the 1 in 42 kids in the KC area that doesn’t have their own place to sleep at night. Since its founding, Sleepyhead Beds has raised thousands of beds for kids in KC, has won countless awards, and recently won a national grant from Mercedes-Benz for their efforts in community service.

There are several ways you can help Sleepyhead Beds. 

1.       Make a donation. Donations go towards bed cleaning supplies, fuel, and the purchasing of additional beds. A $40 donation will guarantee a child will have somewhere to sleep tonight! Visit www.SleepyheadBeds.org to donate directly.

2.       Donate a bed! Getting a new bed? Kids finally out of the house? Donate that sucker to Sleepyhead Beds and know it will go to help someone in KC get a decent night sleep! Visit www.SleepyheadBeds.org to schedule a pickup, or bring it by next Saturday to either of the KC Cache Dash locations at Garmin or Aristocrat Motors.

3.       Bedding! Goes with beds like spaghetti and meatballs, although you probably wouldn’t want to sleep in either. Donate some clean bedding or new pillows the same way as in option #2!

4.       Donate your time / vehicle. Sleepyhead Beds operates exclusively using volunteers. Visit their website to come help pickup and deliver beds year round. If you’ve got a sweet truck or van, that would be doubly awesome.

Come learn more about Sleepyhead Beds at the KC Cache Dash, or reach out to #TeamEvoque , the KC Cache Dash team competing for them. #TeamEvoque is made up of Jessica Best (@BestofJess) and Ramsey Mohsen (@RM). Give them a shout on twitter to find out more about Sleepyhead, their team, or the #KCCacheDash !

2012 KC Cache Dash: Meet the Teams

It's less than two weeks until the 2012 KC Cache Dash. Here is a breakdown of the teams:

#TeamRange

Comprised of Social Media Club of Kansas City President Joe Cox (@JoeNormal) and H&R Block Social Media rep Matthew Staub (@Staubio), they will be competing for Kid’s TLC, a local organization that seeks to provide opportunities that transform kids and families in crisis while ensuring a safe environment. Donate to Kid’s TLC athttp://bit.ly/DonateTLC , and follow this cache dash team through the #TeamRange hashtag. Learn more about Kid’s TLC at http://kidstlc.org/ .

#TeamLR4

The #TeamLR4 duo is a combination of Alex Ogata (@aogata) , a project leader at HNTB and Aaron Thacker (@yourdp), social media sleuth at MMGY Global and die-hard car enthusiast. #TeamLR4 represents Project Uplift, a local meal delivery and support service for the homeless of Kansas City. Donate to Uplift by visitinghttp://uplift.org/ , and donate by clicking http://bit.ly/DonateUplift. Follow this team’s progress through the #TeamLR4 hashtag.

#TeamEvoque

The pair of email marketing aficionado Jessica Best (@BestofJess) and Director of Social Media at Digital Evolution Group, Ramsey Mohsen (@RM) will make up #TeamEvoque. They will be competing on behalf of Sleepyhead Beds, a KC based charity that seeks to provide beds for kids in that don’t have a place to lay their head at night. Support the #TeamLR4 by donating to Sleepyhead Beds athttp://bit.ly/DonateSHB , and follow the team’s progress through the #TeamEvoque hashtag. 
Learn more about Sleepyhead Beds at www.SleepyheadBeds.org . 

#TeamRRSport

#TeamRRSport is made up of Justin Goldsborough (@JGoldsborough), a social media guy at Fleishman-Hillard, and Alisha Templeton (@AlishaBethT), social media manager for Ameristar Casinos. #TeamRRSport will be raising money and awareness for the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. To visit the local YMCA on the web visit http://www.kansascityymca.org/ and support the team by donating athttp://bit.ly/DonateYMCA . Otherwise follow their progress on the #TeamRRSport hashtag.


Follow and support your favorite Cache Dash team via their Twitter hashtag, or the whole event using the #KCCacheDash hashtag!


Good luck!

2012 Kansas City Auto Show: Certified Pre-Owned Mercedes-Benz Vehicles

A few keen auto show attendees noticed that we had something rather unique in our Mercedes-Benz section. No, it wasn't the SLR McLaren or SLS AMG. Tucked by the booth was a 2008 Mercedes-Benz E350 4MATIC sedan.

Why would we have a pre-owned vehicle at a new car focused auto show? To highlight the benefits of buying Mercedes-Benz Certified Pre-Owned vehicles of course! In our video with Julie, a Mercedes-Benz product specialist, she highlighted several of the benefits of purchasing a pre-owned Mercedes-Benz.

A few of the items included:

• Special interest rates for certain certified vehicles.
• Rigorous quality check and inspection process.
• Extended warranty coverage.

To see all of the benefits of Certified Pre-Owned Mercedes-Benz vehicles, visit the video here.

Aristocrat Motors is a Merriam, KS based automobile dealership specializing in Mercedes-Benz, smart, Porsche, Maserati, Land Rover, and Jaguar vehicles. Visit us online at www.AristocratMotors.com , on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/AristocratMotors , or on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AristocratKC .

2012 Kansas City Auto Show: Interview with Mercedes-Benz Club

On Sunday, as the auto show was winding down, I had the opportunity to sit down and chat with Kevin Arburn, an officer of the Kansas City chapter of The Mercedes-Benz Club of America.

The local chapter has been around for 40 years, and is just now approaching 300 members locally. They engage in driving events, charities, and owners events on a monthly basis. If you are interested in joining, you can find out more information at www.mbca.org .

When I asked Kevin what his favorite car at the show was, he replied that "It's hard to ignore the new SLS (AMG) Roadster."

Watch the full interview here.

Aristocrat Motors is a Merriam, KS based dealership specializing in Mercedes-Benz, smart, Porsche, Maserati, Land Rover, and Jaguar vehicles. Visit us online at www.AristocratMotors.com , on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/AristocratMotors , and on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AristocratKC .

2012 Kansas City Auto Show: Interview with Sean Reardon

The Kansas City Auto Show provided us a great place to showcase our wonderful vehicles. Another opportunity we were provided was to highlight some of the best parts about owning one of our cars.

For Porsche owners, one of the best opportunities is to be a member of The Porsche Club of North America. Fortunately for us, some of the PCNA members were on hand in our Porsche booth for the show.

I had the opportunity to speak with Sean Reardon, one of the local officers with PCNA, who described their group of 500+ members. The Kansas City chapter organizes driving events, parties, and charity events all surrounding the joys of Porsche ownership.

According to Sean, "All it takes to join is a VIN number."

After talking to him about PCNA, the conversation moved to the auto show, where I asked him which vehicle caught his eye the most. We came to agreement that the new Porsche 911 was the star of the show.

View the entire interview by clicking here.

Aristocrat Motors is a Merriam, KS based automobile dealership specializing in Mercedes-Benz, smart, Porsche, Land Rover, Jaguar, and Maserati vehicles. Visit us on the web at www.AristocratMotors.com , on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/AristocratMotors , or on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AristocratKC.

The Auto Show is Here!

It’s finally here: The 2012 Kansas City International Auto Show. Last year, we provided updates on the show, photos, and additional content.

This year we promise even more! Our crack social media representative, Kris, will be on hand for the entire show, providing frequent updates through the Aristocrat Motors Twitter handle.

In addition to the updates, we will be offering photos and video from the show. We will also be conducting interviews live from the show floor with some very special guests.

Make sure to stop by our massive section on the North end of the main hall!

Big XII Fan Fest Competition

On top of the downtown buzz surrounding the auto show, this week also marks the Big XII college basketball tournament, where thousands of fans from around the Midwest come to Kansas City to cheer on their favorite team.

As with last year, we are again sponsoring the Big XII fan fest at the Kansas City Live! Block in the Power and Light District downtown. 

Last year we chose one lucky fan to try and hit 5 3-point shots from around a goal in just a few minutes with the opportunity to win a 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class coupe. Unfortunately he didn’t win, but this year we are bringing a competition where there will definitely be a winner.

This year, fans can come to Aristocrat Motors (Land Rover / Jaguar / Pre-Owned Building) before Wednesday; put their name into our entry box, along with their favorite team (KU / MU / K-State). We will then select one fan of each local school.

These three fans will then meet at the KC Live! Block on Thursday, where they will play a classic game of HORSE. The winner of this time honored basketball tradition will receive a weekend in a Jaguar, hotel stay, dinner, and two tickets to opening day at Kauffman stadium.

Hurry up to Aristocrat Motors to register for a chance to represent your team for bragging rights and fabulous prizes!

Aristocrat Motors is a Merriam, KS based automobile dealership specializing in Mercedes-Benz, smart, Porsche, Maserati, Land Rover, and Jaguar vehicles. Visit us online at www.AristocratMotors.com , on Facebook at www.Facebook.com/AristocratMotors , or on Twitter at www.Twitter.com/AristocratKC .