Teen pop sensation, Stratford's famous native son Justin Bieber has teamed with Frank Sandola, Dealer Principal of Stratford Hyundai to re-build the Skate Park in Stratford.
During a recent holiday visit to his home town, Mr. Bieber dropped into Stratford Hyundai to autograph a red, 2012 Hyundai Genesis Coupe 2.0T. The car is now being showcased inside the dealership while it is put up for an online public auction. Bidding will begin in January.
The entire proceeds from the auction are to be donated to the local Stratford Skate Park, Mr. Bieber’s fundraiser of choice. Mr. Sandola has been in conversation with Stratford’s Mayor Dan Matheson, and Mayor Matheson was excited to re-build the Skate Park.
What sparked Mr. Sandola’s idea to harness the power of celebrity for a charitable cause was the visit of Mr. Bieber’s grandmother to his dealership to purchase a new car. “In talking with her, we tried to figure out a way that the dealership could help Justin raise money for a cause of his choice, to help locally in Stratford. I could see the Biebers are incredibly kind and caring people so the idea of donating a car with Justin Bieber’s autograph just came naturally out of that conversation,” explained Mr. Sandola. During this past holiday season, Mr. Bieber has been generous in donating to charity within the Stratford area, with the most recent recipients being the House of Blessing. He has also vowed to donate part of the proceeds of his new CD Under the Mistletoe to the children’s charity, Pencils of Promise.
The current Skate Park was built in 2000, and is used by many for both skate boarding and BMX bikes. It is somewhere safe the kids can go and hone their talent on the ramps and rails. There is no cost to use the park and is located next to the YMCA in Stratford. The Skate Park is included on “Justin’s Stratford” map, handed out by Tourism Stratford to fans visiting Stratford. The Park will now be re-built and improved, thanks to Justin Bieber and Stratford Hyundai!
WINNING BIDDER ALLAN KOMENDA TEAMS UP WITH
FRANK SANDOLA AND JUSTIN BIEBER
Allan Komenda of London Ontario feels like he didn’t pay enough. In the last few seconds of the auction on e-Bay that ended on Monday, January 30, 2012, he was the $40 000.00 winning bid on the Hyundai 2012 Genesis Coupe 2.0T signed by Justin Bieber . Allan Komenda was stunned that the winning bid was so low. He said that had the auction been held in Los Angeles or New York where the known car buyers and media are, the bidding would have definitely been higher. Allan Komenda bid on the signed Genesis to help the kids in Stratford have a refurbished skate park, per Justin’s wishes, and to use the car to aid other charities he supports. Since he felt the car didn’t sell for enough to help the kids in Stratford, Allan Komenda is willing to match Frank Sandola’s donation of the car and raise his bid to $80 000.00 for the car! In total, the car auction raised $80 000.00 for the City of Stratford toward the skate park.
Story Update - City of Stratford has begun meetings for the new
Skate Park! We will keep you posted on the progress!