Help the Norristown Salvation Army with Conicelli This Season

Conicelli Cares 

Hello everyone, this year we have decided for our holiday project to assist our local Norristown Salvation Army Shelter.  I took a tour of the shelter and really had a chance to appreciate what they do for the homeless families in our community.  I hope that you will all be willing to help the Shelter this holiday season.  Even the smallest donation or item would be greatly appreciated. 

If you would like to tour the shelter, you may call Rob Fecho at 610-275-9225 ext. 211.  Donation boxes will be placed in each showroom and service department from Nov. 8-Dec. 21^st.

The shelter is always in need of products, but often lacks the funds to purchase them.  We are asking you to consider joining together with us in donating any of the following items.

Items Needed:


single white sheets (fitted and flat)

·         white pillow cases

·         pillows

·         liquid laundry detergent

·         bleach

·         toilet paper

·         towels

·         wash cloths

·         napkins

·         lotion

·         diapers (all sizes)

·         baby wipes

·         bar soap

·         toothpaste

·         liquid dish soap

·         baby oil

·         combs

·         brushes

·         hair picks

·         shampoo

·         conditioner

·         female personal hygiene products

·         Lysol

·         Comet cleanser

·          Brooms

·         dust pans

·         55 gallon thick trash bags

Testimonial from a Salvation Army guest:

“I came to the Salvation Army to escape from my abusive fiancé.  When I met him he didn’t drink but as time went on he started to drink heavily and would occasionally get physical with me.  One time he beat me and beat our son and that is when I left, never to return.  I was scared when we arrived and the people there were so supportive to my son and me.  After two months I was enrolled in a county program to finish my education.  I was able to get into another Salvation Army program that helped pay my rent as I worked and went to school.

Today I am working full time in the medical field, my son and I have our own apartment and I was able to save up for my first used car.  I never expected my life to get so mixed up but I am thankful that the Salvation Army shelter was there for us, so very thankful.”

Welcome Home Lieutenant Brian P. Rowan!!

Conicelli Autoplex wants to recognize Brian Rowan, U.S. Army 2nd Lt., for his contributions to Operation Enduring Freedom while serving in Afghanistan for the past 6 months. He is arriving home today, October 25th, 2010, for some much needed rest and relaxation with his friends and family for 2 weeks before heading back for another 6 months. 

Rowan is a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army and platoon leader of Support Platoon, Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 1st Special Troops Battalion, Task Force Spartan, native of Langhorne, Pa, and West Point Class of '09 Graduate.

One of his platoon's primary roles is to train the Afghan National Police and Afghan National Army along with the continued efforts to partner, advise and assist in developing the government of Afghanistan through projects and daily interaction.

His unit oversees all issues within the Behsood District of Nangarhar Province. Along with daily missions to villages within the district, they also conduct overnight missions at the ANP station to increase security, train the ANP, and conduct combined patrols. These missions enable other brigade advisors in the areas of legal, engineering and governance, spending more than 18 hours per week at the district centers strictly on these matters alone. 

Brian Rowan, platoon leader, interacts with the village maliks regularly. “Our platoon is very fortunate to be able to work with the people of the Behsood District. Everyone is very hospitable and friendly toward us when we visit the different villages.”

The progress in the most populated district in Nangarhar Province is a direct reflection of the hard work of Support Platoon Soldiers with the Government of Afghanistan leaders to ensure a better future for the people of this country.

 Please leave comments below!

Is Texting While Driving More Dangerous Than Drinking and Driving?

You're driving on the highway and your phone lights up.  You have a text from your friend.  What do you do?  Your first reaction is to see what it says.  A ton of people, mostly young adults and teens, aren't thinking of the consequences and dangers involved when texting while driving.  It doesn't really sink in until something happens to you or a close family or friend.

A solution that could help the problem is to get a car with Bluetooth capability, or buy one at a store.  Best Buy has the kind that you can put on your car visor that works real well for $80.  Click here to check it out.

Not only is Bluetooth convenient and cool, it’s also a major safety feature as well. Texting while driving increases the risk of a crash much more than previous studies have shown with motorists taking their eyes off the road longer than they do when talking or listening on their cell phones.

 

The Obama administration reported that nearly 6,000 people were killed and a half-million injured last year in vehicle crashes connected to driver distraction with cell phones and texting. Driver distraction was involved in 16% of all fatal crashes in 2009. Dialing a cell phone and using or reaching for an electronic device increased risk of collision about 6 times in cars and trucks.

 

According to a study released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI), 80% of crashes and 65% of near-crashes involve some form of driver distraction. The distraction occurred within three seconds before the vehicle crash!

On any given day last year, more than 800,000 vehicles were driven by someone using a handheld cell phone during the day. The greatest proportion of distracted drivers were those age 20 and under. Twenty four states have already passed laws to make texting illegal while driving.

Think next time before you text in the car.  It may save your life or someone elses!

Please leave comments below!

The Man Behind The Philly Phanatic

Ever wonder who’s the big galoot in the shag-green suit that dances on top of the dugout and drives an ATV around Citizen’s Bank Park? It’s forty-five year old, Tom Burgoyne, whose 5’10”, 170 pounds, and has been wearing the thirty-five pound Phanatic suit for seventeen years, since the 1994 season.

Tom wasn’t green to being a Mascot when he first started with the Phillies. He had been the Hawk at Saint Joseph’s Prep when he was in college. Burgoyne remembers the day in 1989 when he browsed the want ads in The Philadelphia Inquirer. He was a year out of business school at Drexel and checked first under S, for sales, and then under M, for management. That's when he saw it: Mascot Wanted. He answered the blind ad, which turned out to be for the backup Phanatic.

He performed more than a thousand times in shopping malls and classrooms before, the original Phanatic, Dave Raymond, which left after sixteen years in 1994. Burgoyne has been the main man ever since.

"It's supposed to look easy," Burgoyne says. "But it's not. This is hard work. Sure, it smells, and you get the occasional foul ball to the noggin. I sweat through five T-shirts a night. But that's no big deal. You put some stick-on air fresheners in the head and Febreze under the armpits at night and you're good to go."

For more info about Tom Burgoyne, check out the two links below:

http://www.newsday.com/sports/baseball/yankees/e-boland-and-the-bombers-1.812003/the-phillie-phanatic-speaks-1.1559644

http://www.usatoday.com/sports/tenworstjobs-10-mascot.htm

Conicelli Donates Coats to Children at the Fredrick Douglass Christian School

Conicelli Autoplex is donating coats for needy kids through Operation Warm and Auto Dealers Association of Greater Philadelphia.  Operation Warm is one of the largest nonprofit organizations that distribute new winter coats in the United States to children that cannot afford them.

Dom Conicelli helping to bring boxes of coats into Fredrick Douglas Christian School.

Auto Dealers CARing for Kids Foundation purchased 10,000 new winter coats and, through Operation Warm, will distribute them to needy children in Philadelphia’s five-county area this fall.  Conicelli Nissan, Conicelli Honda, Conicelli Toyota, Conicelli Scion, and Conicelli Hyundai in Conshohocken, PA, and Conicelli Toyota in Springfield, PA have each agreed to donate an additional coat for each vehicle sold from September 1 to September 30, 2010.

Last year the combined franchises of Conicelli Autoplex donated a total of 900 coats to Operation Warm and the Automobile Dealers Association of Greater Philadelphia for the 2009 Driving Away the Cold Campaign.

For more info about Operation Warm, please check out Conicelli's Facebook Fan Page!

Pat Buscemi's October 2010 Newsletter

First Look at the 2011 Honda Odyssey at Conicelli Honda

Unlike any Minivan you’ve ever seen, Honda introduces its fourth generation Odyssey this week. This is the ultimate family vehicle targeted for the y generation starting to have children. Toyota decided to target this market with its newly designed Toyota Sienna, aka Swagger Wagon, a few months ago and really set the bar for a hip twist on minivans. This type of minivan has never been seen before…until its biggest competitor came out of nowhere and one upped them.

Safety, quality, reliability, and style are just a few characteristics that can describe this new Honda. The Odyssey is wider and lower than the model it replaces. Under the hood is a 3.5L engine with 248 horsepower. This new minivan gets 18 mpg in the city and 27 mpg on the highway. It has the same trim levels as the third generation models: LX, EX, EX-L, and EX-L RES (Rear entertainment system), Touring, and Touring Elite.

The Touring Elite has a “cold box” in the lower center stack that keeps beverages cold while the vehicle is running. How cool is that!!

The interior has an expensive and upscale look much like an Acura. It has Bluetooth capability and heated seats. There is a "lightning-bolt" beltline. The "bolt" is functional, as it improves outward visibility from the third row seats. Instead of a 6 in dash cd player, there is 2GB of memory to store music inside the car. An EX-L Touring model has navigation of 60 GB of memory. They also have an HDMI cord for video games or Bluray players, 5.1 Surround Sound w/ 16.2 inch Ultra wide Entertainment System.

Please call Michael Hammond at 610-828-1400 ext 1128 for more info or to set an appointment to check out the all new 2011 Honda Odyssey.

Check out the new 2011 Honda Odyssey Commercial:

Please leave comments below and let us know what minivan you like better, Toyota Sienna or the new Honda Odyssey.