There are plenty of tough stories stemming from the COVID-19 pandemic, and we highlighted one a couple of weeks ago involving Charity Salyers, the owner of Vittles Restaurant in Smyrna, Georgia. After the coronavirus outbreak severely impacted her business, Salyers sold her Ford Mustang to help pay her rent for two months, then divided up the remaining proceeds from the sale among her eight employees.
Thankfully, this story of incredible generosity got around, and people willing to help Salyers were listening. According to the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Savannah Volkswagen of (you guessed it!) Savannah, Georgia caught wind of the story and stepped in to help out. The dealership shipped Salyers a 2017 Toyota RAV4 this week to replace her Ford Mustang.
Salyers told AJC that the dealership reached out to her around a week after her story hit the news. It offered to cover the payments on the used RAV4, which has 30,000 miles on the clock, for around six months. Needless to say, Salyers was humbled by the generous move. “They wanted to do what they could to get me another vehicle,” she said. “I was just shocked, and just grateful.”
Jennita Orr, the finance manager at Savannah Volkswagen, said she saw Salyer’s story online and shared it with her general manager, Anthony Bryant. “We’re always looking for stories like this and looking to give back,” she said. “We thought it was a great opportunity because we don’t have many people who would sacrifice themselves for others and in this time, we all need each other.”
And that isn’t the only positive effect this news story has had on Salyer’s life, either. She told AJC that business at Vittles has picked up since the story was published, with some customers traveling from as far as 40 miles away to come eat at the restaurant.
Obviously, we would have preferred to see Salyers back in another Ford Mustang, or any Ford vehicle, for that matter, but we also appreciate the willingness of Savannah Volkswagen to provide her with a means of transportation for the short term. Hopefully, six months from now, the COVID-19 pandemic will be behind us and she’ll be able to get back behind the wheel of Ford’s galloping pony.
We’ll continue covering all the latest Ford-related COVID-19 news and its impact on our communities, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for more Ford Mustang news and the latest Ford news coverage.
Comments
FORD should have stepped all the up and put the restaurant owner back in a Ford free of charge, but at the end of the day someone reached out and help God Bless her , her employee’s and the dealership
Yes it should have been a Ford dealership or Ford Motor Corp that put her back in a ride not just reporting what has been done in kindness of folk volkswagon dealer, then working the Ford brand into the conversation with maybe we will or we would like to see her in a Ford or other definitions that place Ford and their dealers disingenuously onto the article. Shame on Ford and the lame dealers trying to horn in on the generosity of others. FORD DO THE RIGHT THING AND GIVE HER FREE A SVT MUSTANG
There is nothing disingenuous about it, Thomas.
Ford Authority is not Ford. We are an independent publication, as it clearly states everywhere throughout the site. What we are doing is reporting the news, it’s as simple and honest as that.
Ford district manager and local Ford dealers were asleep to make a big PR gesture. Small thinking and not very aware of the big picture for business. Kudos to Savanah VW. Smart business move, except it should have been a vw.
What’s ironic is that the Volkswagen dealership basically trapped her into payments just like all the other dealership “specials” you see on TV at this time. Delaying 6 months of payments isn’t anything any other new/used car buyer is being offered. The least that dealership could’ve done is allow her to pick out the vehicle she’d be having to make payments on.
Gee, thanks for the debt!
You guys have a Ford Mustang in the lot why not give her that? Also 6 months no payments, that’s not really costing you much of anything.
The real shame is a Toyota for a Mustang. So sad 😢.
FoMoCo missed a huge PR opportunity!
FoMoCo should’ve stepped up and given her a brand new Mustang, no payments!
In the big scheme of things, wouldn’t have cost FoMoCo anything!
FoMoCo, shut the gate after the cow got out!😳