Our 5th Annual Van Horn Gives Golf Outing was another great success! On September 20, more than 40 teams gathered at Sheboygan Town & Country Golf Course for a day of golf, friendly competition, and giving back.

Thanks to our golfers, sponsors, volunteers, and community partners, this year's event raised an incredible $35,000 for nonprofit organizations!

Through our Pay It Forward program, winning teams had the opportunity to direct donations to organizations meaningful to them.

• 1st Place: $10,000 split between Samaritan's Hand, Blandine House, and United Way of Sheboygan County. (Brian Wieland. Charles Beau and Kevin Miller)
• 2nd Place: $7,500 to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. (Brad Knight and Jack Kraemer)
• 3rd Place: $5,000 to Project Angel Hugs. (Tim Rice, Raimund Immig, Jim Schad and Brandon Watson 

Three additional teams were randomly selected to Pay It Forward, resulting in $5,000 to Dogs2DogTags, $4,000 to the Sheboygan County YMCA, and $3,500 to United Way of Sheboygan County's PATH Program.

• Random Drawing: $5,000 to Dogs2Dogtags (Everett Van Horn, Max Faz, Patrick Van Horn and Brennen Van Horn)
• Random Drawing; $4,000 to YMCA (Paul and Reeds team- Fleet)
• Random Drawing: $3,500 towards United Way PATH Program (Jocelyn Hanson’s Team)

We also welcomed several nonprofit and community partners to the course, giving golfers the chance to connect with organizations that make a difference in our communities.

A special thank you to our major sponsors: Zurich, Autosled, Wells Fargo, CornerStone One LLC, and Podium, along with all our additional sponsors and supporters.

And of course, thank you to our Van Horn Gives Committee, employee volunteers, participating teams, and everyone who helped make the event possible. We're already looking forward to next year!

Read more at: https://www.vhcars.com/17612-2/

This year marks an exciting milestone as Van Horn Automotive Group celebrates 60 years in business!

What started in 1966 with a single Chevrolet dealership in Plymouth has grown into an employee-owned automotive group with 18 dealerships across Wisconsin.

On October 3, employees from across Van Horn came together at The Osthoff Resort in Elkhart Lake to celebrate this milestone. It was a great opportunity to connect with coworkers from other dealerships, look back on how far we've come, and celebrate the people who have helped make Van Horn what it is today.

As part of the celebration, we also partnered with Sheboygan County Food Bank for a food drive, giving employees an opportunity to support local families while celebrating. Did you know we collected, 1,665 pounds!!

Van Horn on The Morning Blend!

Our President, Jeff Niesen, also recently appeared on TMJ4's The Morning Blend to talk about Van Horn's 60-year history, our continued growth throughout Wisconsin, and our recent expansion in the Milwaukee area.

From one dealership in 1966 to 18 locations today, there's a lot to celebrate, and we're excited to see what comes next!

Watch Jeff's Morning Blend appearance

Thank you to everyone who helped organize our anniversary celebration and to all our employee-owners who continue to be part of Van Horn's story!

Q: “What’s one small thing that makes your workday better?”

Ryan Elsinger- Van Horn Ford of Sheboygan 

 Good music, 80s rock, clean and gets people living

Q: “What’s one small thing that makes your workday better?”

Kyle Stowers- Carsfor15k

Seeing someone he has helped leave a good review immediately after being assisted

Creating memorable experiences they will remember during their review.

What started as a change in career direction turned into a career in automotive service. Gabriel originally went to school for electrical maintenance, but after talking with his counselor about his interests, he decided to try an automotive program. Having grown up working on cars with his dad, brother, and grandpa, he quickly discovered that automotive was the right fit for him.

During his time in the High Gear program, one of the biggest lessons he learned was to absorb as much information as possible and not be afraid to ask questions. His mentor, Collin, also taught him the importance of staying organized and keeping his work area clean. Early in the program, Collin even stayed late to help reorganize his toolbox, and Gabriel still has it set up the same way today. Now, as a mentor himself, he hopes to pass that same mindset along by encouraging his mentee and other young technicians to learn from everyone around them and take advantage of every opportunity to grow.

What is it like being on the other side of the program as a mentor?

“Being on the other side as a mentor feels like a big accomplishment for me. I understand what my mentee might be going through because I was in his shoes at one point. When he says, ‘This might be a dumb question,’ I can relate because I was the one asking those questions when I started.”

How does it feel knowing your hard work led to you becoming an A-level technician?

“It feels almost unreal. When I started out, I was the one asking all the questions, and today I’m on the other end answering them. Knowing that all my hard work has paid off and that I’m able to teach other young technicians is pretty crazy.”

His journey through High Gear has come full circle: from student, to A-level technician, to mentor helping the next generation of technicians.