Van Horn Drives in Donations for Kevin

On Saturday, May 5, 2018, Van Horn Hyundai of Fond du Lac held a Test Drive Fundraiser for a local youth named Kevin Kollmann. Kevin was born with Cerebral Palsy and is an honor roll student at Fond du Lac High School. He is planning to attend UW Whitewater to pursue a degree in Science Education. Kevin needs a wheelchair accessible vehicle that will allow him to drive to work and school. Van Horn's Test Drive Event brought in over $1,000 for Kevin's cause. In addition to the test drives, Sunny 97.7 and Rock 95 & 96-1 the Rock were on location with giveaways, as well as Ang an Eddie's Chicago Style Hot Dog Cart, who graciously donated 10% of their profits. It was a beautiful, sunny day, and Kevin had a great time riding with some of his fan's during their test drives.​

Meals on Wheels Recipient of Pay-It-Forward Donation

Last week, the Sheboygan County Chamber of Commerce held their 2018 Chamber Champions Gala at the Osthoff Resort in Elkhart Lake. In attendance representing Van Horn Automotive Group were Teresa Van Horn, Dick Strong, Sunday Strong, Jeff Niesen, Brian Wieland, and Crystal Dekker. Van Horn Automotive Group was a Platinum Sponsor of this event, as well as the host of the the “Pay-it-Forward moment” – a random drawing, allowing a chosen guest to select a charity for a $1000 donation. 

Brett Fosdick, Sales Manager at US Cellular, was the lucky recipient of the Pay-it-Forward award. He chose to pay it forward to Meals on Wheels of Sheboygan County, Inc. He stated that he chose Meals on Wheels of Sheboygan County because “they have helped out a peer of mine who was in need in the past.  I believe it’s a great service for people who aren’t able to leave the confines of their homes to be able to get meals delivered to their homes.” 

Meals on Wheels of Sheboygan County partners with local farmers and gardeners to provide fresh meals for the elderly and homebound. 

Van Horn has sponsored the Pay-it-Forward donation for the past four years, benefiting other local organizations such as the Sharon S. Richardson Community Hospice, the Sheboygan County Cancer Care Fund, and RCS Empowers Inc. 

Teresa Van Horn believes it is very important as a pillar of the communities we live to give back to the community and support one another. "We have been very fortunate to have the support of our communities these past 50 years.  Pay-it-forward gives us the opportunity to say thank you and give the community the additional opportunity to help each other out.  The support that communities receive from our business and the many other businesses will help us to continue to grow and remain strong for the future," says Van Horn.

For more information about Meals on Wheels of Sheboygan County, please visit http://www.freshmealsonwheels.org.

VAN HORN OF PLYMOUTH TOPS WISCONSIN FCA DEALERS

Van Horn Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Fiat, located at 3000 Eastern Ave, Plymouth, WI, is proud to announce their status as #1 FCA dealer for new car sales in Wisconsin and #1 Ram dealer in the Midwest.  

Opened in 1987 as Chuck Van Horn Dodge, it was the second Van Horn dealership established after the original Joe Van Horn Chevrolet in 1966. After celebrating 50 years of business, the Van Horn Automotive Group opened a Truck Center in 2016 to create a destination for truck enthusiasts. “Having a dedicated location with Ram experts serving truck buyers has really helped us be successful in the market,” says Adam Gaedke, Platform Vice President for the Van Horn Automotive Group. “This is a very satisfying accomplishment considering the competition from larger metropolitan FCA dealers in the state of Wisconsin and throughout the Midwest.”

Van Horn Chrysler Dodge Jeep Ram Fiat of Plymouth and the Van Horn Truck Center employ over 45 people in both sales and service. “We’ve seen a lot of growth with the Automotive Group in just the last two years, expanding to markets including: Oconomowoc, Lomira and even Newhall, IA,” says Chuck Van Horn, CEO of Van Horn Automotive Group. “Its great to see one of our original locations stand the test of time and achieve this level of success in the backyard of our Plymouth headquarters. We really owe our success to the support from our local community and our employee owners in building a solid reputation.”

Van Horn Ford Chevrolet of Newhall Grand Opening

Tuesday, December 12, 2017 was an exciting day for Van Horn Automotive Group- we held our grand opening celebration for our first out of state location in Newhall, Iowa!

We celebrated with a performance by Jazz band, Eddie Piccard, Lifetime Achievement Award presentations, a ribbon cutting ceremony, public open house, and giveaways from Hyvee, Cit Drel Supper Club, First Stop, and numerous Van Horn prize packs. Scott Saville, sports talk show host from KCRG, was our MC for the night. The event was catered by Hyvee, who provided two separate delicious food stations as well as an ice cream bar!

During the ceremony, Bill Grovert was presented the Lifetime Achievement Award by Newhall Council Member, Bill Much. Steve Schallau also received this same honor presented by Van Horne Mayor, Martin Junge. Both of these awards were given to honor Mr. Grovert and Mr. Schallau’s work in the local automotive industry. Steve Schallau proudly presented Van Horn President, Dick Strong with a Ford clock that was displayed in the original Newhall Ford dealership. Teresa Van Horn presented a $2,000 check to the Benton Scholarship Fund. 

Van Horn Ford Chevrolet of Newhall welcomed over 200 guests to our celebration. Van Horn Automotive Group is looking forward to our future in the Benton County community.

More photos of our grand opening celebration can be found in our Facebook album.

Van Horn Gives Back to the Food Pantry

11/29/2017

This past summer Van Horn Automotive Group purchased various livestock raised through the 4H program at the Ozaukee and Sheboygan County fairs. We had the meat processed and offered it to our employees in exchange for a donation to our local food pantries. Donations were made to the Plymouth Food Pantry, Kewaskum Food Pantry, Peter's Pantry, Fondy Food Pantry, Hunger Task Force, Stoughton Food Pantry, Oconomowoc Food Pantry, and the Sheboygan Food Pantry. Van Horn Automotive Group proudly supports our community food pantries and our local 4H programs.

Representatives from the Plymouth Food Pantry, Exhibitors from local 4H programs, and Ryan Thiel from Van Horn Automotive Group

Van Horn Ford of Lomira Grand Opening

On Thursday October 19^th, 2017, Van Horn Ford of Lomira held a grand opening celebration in honor of their new Ford store located in Lomira Wisconsin. 

Among those who attended the event were Lomira city officials, Lomira High School staff and band members, area chamber businesses, and Van Horn associates. 

The celebration of the new store consisted of a ribbon cutting ceremony, and a public open house with entertainment. 

During the Ribbon cutting ceremony, President Dick Strong from the Van Horn Automotive Group spoke, as well as Roy Edwards, General Manager of Van Horn Ford of Lomira. Lomira High School Principle Deb Janke also took a turn speaking. Later on in the evening band direction Rod Eggert was presented with a $500 check for the High School Band will would use the money toward their trip. 

Entertainment was provided by the Lomira High School Band who played multiple songs for the public, as well as the High School Cheer Team, and WMBZ, 92.5 Buzz Country provided a live broadcast and backdrop of music.

Over 200 people came to celebrate this event, and all those who attended got to enjoy Sue’s Country Catering who served a homestyle meal for guests which included BBQ Pork and Turkey and Gravy.

The atmosphere of the grand opening celebration was neighborly and welcoming. The community came together and celebrated the event in a true warm and friendly fashion.

Van Horn Ford of Lomira is the 12^th dealership to join the Van Horn Family.

Van Horn Automotive Group Adds Ford Lomira to Family of Dealerships

Bringing a wide selection of vehicles and new job opportunities

September 1, 2017

The Van Horn Automotive group has announced the purchase of Ford Lomira from Ernie Von Schledorn, located at 700 East Avenue, Lomira, WI. This marks the 12^th dealership to be part of the Van Horn Automotive Group, and the 2^nd Ford dealership, since Van Horn Ford of Oconomowoc was purchased from Safro in October 2016.


The location has a total lot size of almost 6 acres; capable of holding over 400 vehicles. A 32,000 square-foot, building includes an open-concept showroom and service center, complete with 10 service lifts. Roy Edwards will operate as the General Manager, bringing over 15 years of automotive business experience; most recently functioning as one of the top-performing general sales managers at the Van Horn Truck Center in Plymouth, WI. “This store has great visibility,” said Roy, “And the location allows us the serve the Highway 41 corridor from the Fox Valley south to Milwaukee.”

 

Growing a larger inventory and further developing the service center, Van Horn aims to double the staff from 20 to 40 employees. “We believe in investing in all the communities that we serve,” said Dick Strong, President of Van Horn Automotive Group. “People are our single greatest asset and we will support the people that live and work in Lomira and the surrounding area.”

 

Coming from the small town of Plymouth, WI, Van Horn Automotive Group CEO Chuck Van Horn appreciates the role and responsibility each business has in the community. “Our team all has a common vision,” says Chuck. “We strive to create a great experience for our customers. When the customer is happy, we are happy.”