Jerry Holcom – Banking on Our Future – TTEF Scholarships [FTR 083]

With nearly 50 years’ experience in the automotive field, Jerry Holcom is an ASE Certified Master Auto Technician with the Advanced Engine Performance (L1) certification, a former Certified Master Machinist, and is also an Accredited Automotive Manager (AAM) through the Automotive Management Institute.

Jerry Holcom owns S & S Service Center in Kansas City, MO, is a co-founder of Vision and is the past President of the Midwest Auto Care Alliance (MWACA).

Talking Points:

• Getting and keeping technicians continues to be a big problem
• Scholarships are an answer for the training of our upcoming technicians
• Dave DeCourcey and Harvey Chan are two outstanding trainers worthy of having scholarships in their names.
• The Ed Schaeffer Management Scholarship honors a shop owner, manager or service advisor to honor Ed’s contribution to our industry
• Our legacy aftermarket trainers who have passed is an important reason to build scholarships in their names and keep their legacy going for a perfect cause.
• MWACA is committed to providing scholarships for technicians and your help is needed
• Write a check to the TTEF fund: Mail it to MWACA, 5950 N. Oak Trafficway, Suite 201, Gladstone, MO 64118You can specify a certain scholarship or it will go into the general fund
• This is a 501 c (3) non-for profit corp
• Donate items to TTEF silent auction in conjunction with Vision 
• You can personalize a student scholarship for $1,000 and get recognized at Vision
• You can endow a scholarship for years with a $20,000 check to make the scholarship self-sufficient
• Make TTEF a beneficiary in your Will

Important links below

Message from Jerry:

Happy New Year everyone. Here’s to growth and success in all we do in 2020. Although I have served my 4 years as president, I have a few things to talk about and Sheri Hamilton, Executive Director, told me she would make it happen.

One of my prime goals is to find ways to continue funding scholarships for students, current technicians, and managers. These are close to my heart as Dave DeCourcey, Harvey Chan, and Ed Schaeffer were all good friends, and I feel it is not only appropriate but necessary, to honor their memories with scholarships. In addition, I have followed the careers of several of our previous student scholarship recipients and am overjoyed by the success that many of them have experienced.

This is the reason we created the Technicians of Tomorrow Educational Foundation (TTEF). Our eventual goal is to have several self-sustaining scholarships funded by you. Typically, $20,000 to $25,000 is needed to endow a scholarship that pays out $1,000 every year, so you can see that we will need to raise the stakes if we want to continue awarding four $1000 student scholarships, the Ed Schaeffer Memorial Scholarship, the Dave DeCourcey Scholarship, and the Harvey Chan Memorial Scholarship each year.

The TTEF is a 501(c)(3) organization, so any contributions should be tax-deductible. I urge you to write a check to TTEF for whatever amount you can afford (and a little more). We also have the silent auction in cooperation with VISION, so if you have an item that may have value to anyone else, please donate it to the silent auction to benefit the scholarship fund.

I mentioned an endowment above, and that is a fantastic method of funding the foundation. If you would like to have one of our student scholarships sponsored by your company, you can send a check for $1,000 and note that you would like to help present the “XYZ Company TTEF Scholarship” at our Celebration of Independents on Saturday evening of VISION. If you send a check for $20,000 made out to TTEF, we’ll let you help present the award for several years!

Our industry needs young people that want to be in the auto repair business, and this is one of the best ways for you to help get some people in the door. Please consider writing a check to TTEF for $1,000 or $20,000 or whatever amount you can contribute. Also, make a donation to the silent auction. You’ll actually be helping to solve the technician shortage and you will feel good about helping your industry by helping attract more competent people into the schools and shops.

Thank You,

Jerry Holcom

S & S Service

Past President MWACA

Vision Co-Founder

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