Who loves a Subaru? All kinds of people.
Pet owners love Forester models for their utility and reliability. Performance fans love WRX and BRZ models for their turbocharged Boxer Engines and Symmetrical All-Wheel Drive that make them as impressive on mountain roads as they are on the rally circuit. Naturalists love Solterra EVs for being a vehicle that can explore the outdoors and help protect it at the same time. Families love Ascent models for their ability to haul up to eight passengers and gear. And outdoorsy types adore Outback and Crosstrek models because these SUVs haven’t seen a mountain, muddy path or sandy beach they can’t cross.
Subaru drivers – even those who choose the same model – are a diverse group. But to understand what all these people have in common, you’d have to look more deeply. They’re people with big hearts and a can-do spirit. If they see a person who needs a hand, an animal that needs rescuing or a natural space that needs some TLC, they step up to help out. It’s their sense of caring for their fellow humans, other creatures and the planet that brings them together.
So, it’s no surprise that they are drawn to a car that comes from a company committed to being More Than a Car Company®. Through five core pillars of the Subaru Love Promise – Environment, Health, Education, Pets, and Community – Subaru and its retailers aim to create positive change not just with donations but with actions. This attracts people who have a similar ethos.
Here are the Subaru Community Champions for 2024 who are all driven by a desire to serve and make a difference.
Making a Career Out of Making a Difference
Jack Frost
Ellsworth, Maine / 2020 Subaru Outback Premium
While attending college at the University of Maine at Machias, Jack Frost had an experience that changed his life. He and his fraternity brothers joined a Lions Club program to take kids from economically disadvantaged backgrounds shopping to buy a present for a family member.
“From there, I’ve never stopped doing community service,” says Frost, who is 57. “I do it because I see different things in our community that could be better for people.”
Frost later created a program for the Rotary Club of Ellsworth with a similar ethic called The Gifting Experience. “It’s labeled that way to say we’re giving these young people a chance to give back to a family member,” he says. “It’s a way to honor their parents and guardians and siblings.”
But the heart of his charitable work is being a volunteer for Stanley Subaru in Ellsworth, Maine. Frost helps them execute events from the cleanup at the Woodlawn Museum and public garden to coordinating the annual education appreciation event. Volunteers drive their Subaru vehicles, delivering pizza, soft drinks, and flowers donated by local florist The Bud Connection to over 220 teachers’ aides and staff across town.
Giving back has become more than Frost’s passion; it’s also his career as the director of community giving for Bar Harbor Bank & Trust. It’s not hard to understand why Frost was voted 2023 Citizen of the Year in Ellsworth, a small coastal town that’s the gateway to Acadia National Park.
In an article about the award in The Ellsworth American, the newspaper reported that Frost’s efforts included volunteer work for Trek Across Maine with the American Lung Association of Maine as well as serving on various nonprofit committees and boards.
“I’m a big believer that all of us can make a difference,” Frost says. “It’s just finding ways to have as much impact as you can. That’s different for different people.”
Driving Seniors To Support and Uplift Them
Kathy Loch Klein
Dubuque, Iowa / 2020 Subaru Forester
Kathy Loch Klein bought her first Subaru when she was visiting schools across Iowa as an educational administrator. “I had to drive all over eastern Iowa in winter, and I needed a car that would work,” says Loch Klein, who is 73. “That’s when I found Subaru Foresters, and I’ve been with them ever since.” Now, she’s on her fourth Subaru.
The retired educator puts her Forester to good use as a volunteer driver for DuRide in Dubuque, Iowa, a service that’s available seven days a week, 365 days a year, providing people age 65 or older low-cost rides around the Dubuque metropolitan area. Users arrange rides by telephone, so they don’t have to know how to use an app.
“We give them rides everywhere,” Loch Klein says, even though new riders often think it’s a service only for essential appointments. And that’s one reason why Loch Klein loves volunteering for DuRide because it includes rides not only to support seniors but also to uplift them.
“I didn’t volunteer to take people to doctor’s appointments – I want them to do fun stuff too,” Loch Klein says. Some riders use the service to commute to work or to get their hair done; she’s also taken people to the symphony or a class reunion.
DuRide, which is funded through grants, costs less than a typical rideshare service, and volunteers are essential – providing over 800 rides a month to members. Loch Klein emphasizes that at least 14 Subaru owners volunteer for the organization, and they also deserve kudos for their efforts.
A few people have been perplexed as to why Loch Klein would volunteer to drive around strangers and pay for gas, but she says she wouldn’t give it up for anything.
“You meet the nicest people,” Loch Klein says, “and they are so grateful.”
Restoring Habitats and Cleaning Up State Parks
Caleb Calder
Provo, Utah / 2010 Subaru Outback 2.5 CVT
Every Subaru owner loves their car, but Caleb Calder is especially fond of his Subaru Outback. “His name is Perry,” says Calder, who was inspired by the platypus character in the cartoon Phineas and Ferb. Although Perry the Subaru can’t swim, the SUV can handle pretty much any condition.
“They’re very capable of being a road-worthy vehicle – and off-road worthy – and occasionally can get a little wet,” says the 26-year-old. “Just like the platypus is a semiaquatic animal, it’s a semiaquatic vehicle. I just ran with it.”
Calder is versatile, too, juggling his volunteer work with Subaru along with studies in hospitality management at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. He’s helped restore kestrel habitats and beautify state parks. Their last park cleanup drew 50 volunteers and bagged up a couple hundred pounds of trash.
But his biggest event of the year is supporting the Summer Heat Subie Meet hosted by Mark Miller Subaru South Towne. People with heavily customized WRX cars come to show them off. While the enthusiast event is free to the public, it costs $10 to register a vehicle and all proceeds from the evening (which also includes games, prizes, raffles and food) benefit the retailer’s Loves Veterans partner Continue Mission®, a nonprofit organization that serves veterans and service members who have physical, mental and/or emotional injuries.
Calder has helped to make the event more inclusive. “A lot of the time with car shows the big thing is the streetcar or the WRX scene,” he says. “We wanted to include the off-road community a bit more.” And to keep it from being too serious, they created some spoof prizes for the lowest Subie or the car with the biggest lift. All good fun for a good cause.
Maintaining a Bike and Walking Trail
Kyle Williams & Stacey Williams
York, Pennsylvania / 2022 WRX Limited / 2022 Forester Sport
Growing up in a family of police officers, Kyle Williams always admired the life of public service. But when he graduated from high school, he wanted to serve in a different way. “I went and joined the fire department, and I’ve been doing it for 25 years now,” says Kyle, who is 46.
That belief in helping others also drew him to Subaru. In 2016, Kyle bought his first Subaru and attended his first Boxerfest, the annual enthusiast event sponsored by Subaru of America in York, Pennsylvania.
He met Faulkner Subaru Harrisburg’s team at the 2022 Boxerfest, and the retailer invited him to become an ambassador to help support some of their efforts in the community. His wife, Stacey, later got involved too. Together, they take on any Love Promise initiative that comes their way.
The couple regularly maintain a 1-mile stretch of the Capital Area Greenbelt, a 20-mile bike and walking trail that winds around Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. “We end up picking up beer bottles and fast-food wrappers,” Kyle says. “We’ve also found a laptop, knives and some pretty interesting things.”
The two partnered with Ciocca Subaru of York in York, Pennsylvania, to rejuvenate a forgotten community garden. “We were able to plant vegetables and herbs, and it was such a success that we did it again this year,” Kyle says.
Miller Plant Farm donated some plants, and the 10 raised beds were overflowing with herbs and vegetables by autumn. Though the couple is still working to get local residents involved, they noticed that neighbors quietly added tomatoes, basil and cilantro in between the kale, cabbage and jalapeños they had planted.
“It’s exciting and gives you a sense of purpose when you’re helping people,” Kyle says.
Making Life Better for People and Animals
Janelle Stockwell
Baton Rouge, Louisiana / 2020 Subaru Outback Limited
Life seems a little harder for everyone post COVID-19, so Janelle Stockwell says she’s doing what she can to make life better for others. “My biggest thing lately is be kind – be kind to everyone,” says Stockwell, age 51. “Everyone is different, and that’s what makes them special.”
She likes that her philosophy vibes with the Subaru Love Promise. “I love that their slogan is more than a car company,” she says. Stockwell’s retailer, Subaru of Baton Rouge in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, is creating change in her community in areas that she cares about.
As a volunteer with Subaru of Baton Rouge, Stockwell helps to lend a hand with many community projects. They’ve collected comforting blankets for people undergoing chemotherapy. She’s shared shoes and socks with schoolchildren from disadvantaged backgrounds. “It was such a rewarding thing to be a part of and see the smiles on the kids’ faces,” she says.
But as an animal lover with six rescue dogs, Stockwell’s favorite annual event is the Mystic Krewe of Mutts. Sponsored by Subaru of Baton Rouge, the mile-long themed animal parade benefits spaying and neutering programs with the Capital Area Animal Welfare Society® (CAAWS).
For the “Pawty like it’s 1999” theme, Stockwell and her chocolate Labrador, Princess, donned purple à la the artist formerly known as Prince. Winston, a Chihuahua dachshund mix, is a Subaru ambassadog, so he represented in a company T-shirt. Her Dachshund named Doxie wore a Hawaiian shirt because that’s more his style. “It was a hard decision because he looks good in every shirt,” Stockwell says. “He’s a really handsome guy.”
Just like the Mardi Gras floats, she threw beads to spectators, along with flying discs and dog treats. “It all circles back to being kind,” Stockwell says. “I just love being part of the community.”
Serving Servicemen and Servicewomen
Mark Mauer
Surprise, Arizona / 2024 Outback Wilderness
While the U.S. armed forces may seem self-sustaining, enlisted men and women on limited budgets often need community support. So, one of the first organizations that Subaru Superstore of Surprise, Arizona, partnered with was Fighter Country Foundation, a 501(c)(3) that supports the personnel at Luke Air Force Base and their families.
General Manager Mark Mauer, a driving force behind the retailer’s commitment to customer service and community engagement, says the retailer started by donating a portion of proceeds from Subaru sales to Fighter Country. But over the years, they’ve helped servicemen and servicewomen in other ways as well.
When an unscrupulous person sold a serviceman a car with serious undisclosed damage, Mauer and the Subaru Superstore of Surprise team helped the family get a reliable Subaru. And they collect socks, treats and nonperishable items to fill care packages for enlisted women and men.
Just by chance, Mauer recently met an Air Force retiree who had received one of their care packages while stationed in Afghanistan. “He told me how much he appreciated it,” says Mauer, age 60. “He said he got socks, and it was nice to have something from home.”
Because of his support for Fighter Country, Mauer was appointed as an honorary commander with the 309th Fighter Squadron. He also goes to Luke Air Force Base’s special events like balls and school graduations. And recently, Mauer had a life-changing experience. “I went up in an F-16. You have to be selected by the secretary of state to get that honor.”
Mauer and Subaru Superstore of Surprise also help by supporting El Mirage Elementary with $500 grants for classrooms, participating with Wreaths Across America to honor veterans and hosting pet adoption day at the retailer with nonprofit Anthem Pets.
While making money is important, Mauer says that the feeling he gets from lending someone a hand is so much more satisfying. “If everybody gave just an hour a week,” he says, “how different the world would be.”
Creating Gardens in a State Park to Benefit Wildlife
Patty Mallicote
Lakemont, Georgia / 2020 Forester Touring
Tallulah Gorge State Park boasts one of the most exhilarating gorges in the eastern United States. At 2 miles long and nearly 1,000 feet deep, it is home to five spectacular waterfalls and a fragile ecosystem.
Looking out the window of the interpretive center, Patty Mallicote’s gaze fell on a patch of ground that didn’t match the vibrant green beauty of the rest of the state park. It was an ugly bare section of ground right by the front entrance, she recalls.
That’s when 73-year-old Mallicote, her husband, Rich, and other Friends of Tallulah Gorge State Park (TGSP) volunteers sprang into action. “I kind of headed up the whole gardening effort,” says Mallicote, a master gardener. “We carry shovels, rakes and snippers, pruners and plants, and mulch. That Subaru has been loaded down with 15 bags of mulch.”
But they didn’t stop at one garden. “The Friends of TGSP began by developing a native plant garden to attract birds. The next garden focused on plants attractive to pollinators – this garden was even recognized by Monarchs Across Georgia as a Certified Pollinator Habitat,” says Mallicote.
“Over the years, more gardens were developed by the Friends group,” continues Mallicote. They installed rhododendron, azalea, anise, blueberry bushes, a few kinds of holly vines that climb over a trellis and beautyberry, which has bright purple berries that tempt birds. Rain barrels and a trickling water feature attract animals, including foxes and squirrels.
But Mallicote stresses that she’s not the only Subaru owner who’s been active in this undertaking. “There are a lot of people that worked together on it, and at least 10 of them drive Subarus just by coincidence,” she says. Besides Mallicote, other members of the park transformation team are Susan Respess, Marilyn Shallenberger, Linda Marziliano, Pete Marziliano, Helen Neinast, Terry Knudsen, Keith Knudsen and park manager Lieren Merz.
They’ve been perfecting the gardens for the past 15 years and helping to keep the rest of the park litter free as well. It’s a project no one wants to see come to an end.
“The birds and migratory animals come in and feed off the berries and enjoy this garden,” she says. “You feel proud that you’ve been involved, and you also feel very happy because we’ve done so much for nature.”
