The community’s effort to help the Class of 2017 celebrate its graduation in grand fashion shifted into a higher gear Saturday morning.

Volunteers with Dowagiac’s C. Wimberley Ford dealership teamed up with parents and students with 2017 Celebration Graduation that morning for their annual Drive 4UR School fundraiser, offering free test drives to the community at Dowagiac Union High School. Many throughout Dowagiac came out to the school that morning to support the effort, taking a dozen new Ford vehicles out for a spin.

Pitching in with the event that morning were C. Wimberley Automotive employees Rodney Burdant and Glenn Olson. The event allows locals to get to try out some of Ford’s newest vehicles, without having to worry about any sales pitches from the volunteers manning the event, Burdant said.

The pair has worked the event in Dowagiac in the past, with Burdant volunteering since it was introduced to Dowagiac in 2009.

“It is a real team effort,” Burdant said. “They [Celebration Graduation] handle all the paperwork, while we supply the cars.”

On top of helping in Dowagiac, Wimberley employees pitch in with the Drive 4UR School program in Cassopolis and Eau Claire, Burdant said.

The event serves as one of several ways the dealership gives back to its hometown every year. The company also sponsors the annual Feed the Hungry food drive every winter, and is currently helping out the Greater Dowagiac Chamber of Commerce by donating a two-year lease on a 2016 Chevy Equinox for a raffle that will take place during the Christmas parade
in December.

Several members of the Class of 2017 also pitched in to help out with the event Saturday morning, assisting drivers with filling out their paperwork as well as helping the Wimberley employees drive cars to and from the dealership.

Saturday’s fundraiser was the first chance for the students to assist their parents in raising money for the cause. Organizers with the 2017 Celebration Graduation program have been raising money for the program since summer, looking to collect around $25,000 to pay for a special trip for the seniors the night of their graduation next spring.

“We are really excited to see what our parents have in store for us,” said senior McKenzie Hassle. “We really appreciate everything they are doing for us, as well as for the support the community has shown us.”

Celebration Graduation will host another fundraiser, a reverse raffle, on Saturday, Nov. 5, at the Dowagiac Conservation Club. Tickets cost $35, and include dinner and drinks.