2013 Halloween Costume Contest Results

What a great showing at Central Collision Center's annual Halloween Costume Contest! Once again, our shops truly outdid themselves. From Misfit Toys to Duck Dynasty, we saw a bit of everything this year.

Congratulations to Central Collision of Crete as The Island of Misfit Toys - our 2013 Halloween Costume Contest winner and 2013 Fan Favorite winner!

The team at our Crete location was inspired the story of The Island of Misfit Toys, which tells the story of unwanted toys that are sent to an island sanctuary.

The Island of Misfit Toys as portrayed by our team at
Central CollisionCenter of Crete.

The Island of Misfit Toys won our judges votes based on their original theme, creative costume construction and office transformation into a complete winter wonderland. Here is how our judges scores broke down:

1. Central Collision Center of Crete as The Island of Misfit Toys - 192 points
2. Central Collision Center of Mokena as Gilligan's Island - 182 points
3. Central Collision Center of Peotone as The Wizard of Oz - 177 points
4. Central Collision Center of Oak Forest as Duck Dynasty - 140 points
5. Central Collision Center of Tinley Park as Central Prison - 119 points
6. Central Collision Center of New Lenox as Bumblebees - 110 points

In our Facebook Fan Favorite voting contest, The Island of Misfit Toys took first place again. Here is how our fans voted:

1. Central Collision Center of Crete as The Island of Misfit Toys - 75 votes
2. Central Collision Center of Peotone as The Wizard of Oz - 63 votes
3. Central Collision Center of Mokena as Gilligan's Island - 48 votes
4. Central Collision Center of Oak Forest as Duck Dynasty - 41 votes
5. Central Collision Center of New Lenox as Bumblebess - 31 votes
6. Central Collision Center of Tinley Park as Central Prison - 22 votes

Thank you to all of our team members for participating and all of our fans for voting! Be sure to check in next year at Halloween to see what our teams have in store for you! To see each shops complete entry, visit our Facebook page.

Help Central Collision Collect 3,000 Items for Alicia's House Food Pantry

In an attempt to beat our 2012 donation total, Central Collision Center aims to collect 3,000 items from Nov. 1st  to Nov. 20th in our annual Thanksgiving food drive benefitting Alicia’s House Food Pantry.

Last year, Central Collision collected 1,365 donations from employees, customers and business partners. After the company’s 100% match, Central Collision donated 2,730 items to Alicia’s House. The company will provide a 100% match again this year.

Donations can be dropped off at Central Collision’s offices in Peotone, Mokena, Crete, New Lenox, Oak Forest and Tinley Park, Ill. from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday. In addition to non-perishable food items, the company is also requesting unopened toiletry donations.

Alicia’s House Food Pantry, a 501c3 non-profit, works to alleviate hunger by providing food at no cost to low income residents of Crete, Beecher, Steger, Monee, Peotone, University Park and South Chicago Heights. Located at 17 Paulsen Avenue in South Chicago Heights, Alicia’s House Food Pantry accepts food, clothing and toiletry donations year-round.

To learn more about how you can help Alicia's House, visit the food pantry's website at www.aliciashouse.org. For updates throughout the food drive, visit Central Collision's Facebook page.

Mike Caruso Named FenderBender Magazine's Executive of the Year

At the young age of 23, Mike Caruso and his wife, Nancy, purchased a small auto body shop in Peotone, Ill. The two lived and breathed for their new business, operating the body shop, a tow truck and even a hot dog stand at the front of the shop's property to make ends meet. Many nights, Caruso slept at his desk in between tow calls. His wife, Nancy, worked a full-time job at a nearby hospital. When her shift at the hospital was over, Nancy drove straight to the shop to continue working.

Fast forward 32 years.

Caruso now runs six-location, 85 employee Central Collision Center and has been named
FenderBender Magazine's Executive of the Year. 

Caruso is known for his hard work, business development and commitment to family culture.

Serving the collision repair industry nationally, FenderBender Magazine celebrates the success stories of driven, dedicated and benevolent collision repair professionals each year with the FenderBender Awards.

Caruso credits his company's culture and dedicated employees for the company's success.

"Out of our 85 employees, 16 percent have been here 15 years or more and 11 percent are second generation employees," Caruso said. "We've built a family culture at Central and that is one thing that will never change, even as we expand our business."

Caruso and his team have expanded Central Collision Center throughout the Chicago southland with facilities in Peotone, Mokena, Crete, New Lenox, Oak Forest and Tinley Park, Ill. and one same-day, 24-hour repair facility, Central Express, in Oak Forest, Ill. The company prides itself on customer service, quality and timely repairs, and family culture. 

Read FenderBender's article on Caruso here.

Take the Pledge to Never Text and Drive

Grab your phone and check the last text message you sent. Imagine typing that text at 60 miles per hour. Is that text worth potentially injuring yourself or others? It can wait.

As a member of the National Auto Body Council (NABC), Central Collision Center is proud to support AT&T’s “Texting and Driving…It Can Wait” campaign as it aligns with the NABC’s Distracted Driving initiative. AT&T’s goal through this campaign is to save lives and make texting and driving as unacceptable as drinking and driving.

Tag us on Instagram 
(centralcollisioncenter) and use 
the hashtag #ItCanWait to show 
your support.

Our industry too often sees the devastating impact of texting and driving. We may be able to repair vehicles, but we cannot repair the physical harm that results from texting and driving collisions.

The statistics surrounding this epidemic are startling:

• Those who read and send text messages while driving are 23 times more likely to be in a crash
• 100,000 crashes per year involve drivers who are texting
• 49% of commuters admitted to texting while driving - a higher rate than reported by teens
• 75% of teens say texting and driving is "common" among their friends
• 97% of teens say texting while driving is dangerous - but 43% admit to doing so
• 9 in 10 teens expect a reply to a text/email within 5 minutes, which puts pressure on them to respond while driving
• 77% of teens say adults tell kids not to text/email while driving - yet adults do it "all the time"

  

* Results from AT&T Commuter Survey and AT&T Teen Driver Survey

Thursday, September 19 is Drive 4 Pledges Day. We are asking you to take the pledge to never text and drive by visiting www.go-att.us/NABC. After you take the pledge to never text and drive, share this information with your loved ones. Your voice can save a life, and together we can make our roads safer.

Are We There Yet? Tips For Traveling With Children

Are we there yet? Are we there yet?  If you are a parent to small children like I am, you have probably heard this more times than not.  Keeping kids occupied and happy while in the car can be quite a challenge.  According to a spokesperson for Allstate Insurance, distracted driving is the cause of 80% of all crashes (Parents Magazine).  Children are four times as distracting to drivers as adult passengers, while babies are eight times as distracting.  One study found that on a 16-minute car ride, drivers with kids in the car looked away from the road for an average of 3 minutes and 22 seconds – 21% of the time. (AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety).  That’s almost 1/3 of the total trip time – scary thought!

Central Collision's marketing manager, Nicole, with
husband, Dave, and children, Jake and Addison.

When I am traveling with my children, I always make sure I am prepared.  I like to keep a bag packed with all the necessities and have it handy to grab as I am running out the door. Whether it be a short car ride or a long road trip, you can never be too prepared! Here are some things I never leave home without:

Snacks
I would rather take the time to pack nutritious snacks than be tempted to stop at a fast food restaurant or convenience store. Some go-to snacks that are easy to travel with are:

• Cheerios (or your child's favorite dry cereal) 
• Boxes of raisins 
• Squeezable applesauce packets 
• Granola bars 
• Fruit snacks 
• Crackers 

Activities
Keeping your children occupied while you drive can help eliminate distractions inside the car. Easy in-car toys include Leap Pads, books and the aquadoodle board (coloring pages that use water to create color instead of ink).

BrainPop Jr. Movie of
the Week is available on
iTunes.

If you have young children that like to play on an iPhone or iPad, try the following app suggestions from the Chicago Tribune: 

• Learn With Homer - teaches fundamental reading skills 
• Toy Store Delivery Truck - teaches counting skills through truck deliveries 
• BrainPOP Jr. Movie of the Week - provides a free video each week along with quizzes that allows kids to make connections between videos and related concepts

If you have older children, try the following games to get all passengers involved:

• The Grocery Game - Each player must name an item from the grocery store in alphabetical order, adding to the running "grocery list." Each player must recite the full grocery list in order then add an item starting with the next letter. For example, player 1 says "apples" then player two says "apples" and adds "bananas" 
• I Spy - Each player takes a turn picking an item the other players must identify through asking questions about the item
• Who Am I? - Each player takes a turn picking a person all passengers in the car know. The other players ask yes or no questions to find out information until they can guess the person's identity

Travel Essentials

• Baby wipes
• Extra change of clothes
• Sunscreen
• Towels (never know when we will take a spur of the moment trip to the park!)
• Reward sheet - I keep a reward sheet and a bad behavior sheet with me to reward good behavior and punish bad behavior. This has worked like a charm!

What are your best practices for traveling with children? Share them with us in the comments section!

Dangers of a Hot Car

According to a recent NBC News report, 567 children have died since 1998 as a result of being left alone in a hot car. Eighty-seven percent of children who have died from this cause were three years old or younger.

Children should not be left unattended in a vehicle, especially in the summer heat. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention categorizes a body temperature of 103 degrees or higher as a medical emergency. Just a few minutes in a warm car puts a child at risk of reaching this body temperature, which could cause life-threatening injuries.

On a ninety degree day, a vehicle's temperature will reach:

• 109 degrees after 10 minutes
• 119 degrees after 20 minutes
• 124 degrees after 30 minutes
• 133 degrees after 60 minutes
• 138 degrees after 90 minutes

Dark components within vehicles such as steering wheels, dashboards and seats quickly reach temperatures between 180 and 200 degrees. This heat transfers to the air trapped within a vehicle, causing the entire vehicle to warm. Cracked windows do not prevent or eliminate this intense heat.

Twenty states, including Illinois, enforce laws against leaving children unattended in vehicles.

Central Collision Center encourages you to be mindful of your child's car safety this summer. Share this information with family members, friends, babysitters or daycares that may drive with your children or other children in the car.

4th of July Road Trip Tips

Taking a road trip this 4^th of July? According to AAA, 84% of Americans will hit the road this holiday weekend. Although this is a slight decline from the 41.1 million people that traveled in 2012, roads will still be crowded. Here are Central Collision Center’s tips to make your road trip easier:

1. Prepare your vehicle ahead of time.

There’s nothing worse than having car troubles in an unfamiliar area. Be proactive and do a routine maintenance check before you hit the road. Things to check:  tire pressure, washer fluid, wiper blades, oil and lights (headlights, taillights and turn signal). 

GasBuddy is a free app that
helps you find the cheapest gas.

2. Plan your stops.

Instead of stopping at the first gas station you see, use the free app GasBuddy to plan your stops for gas. GasBuddy finds the cheapest gas near you. The app can also find the cheapest gas by city or zip code. Bonus:  you earn rewards for reporting gas prices.

3. Prepare snacks ahead of time.

Bring a variety of snacks to eliminate unnecessary stops and unhealthy purchases. Pack snacks that will travel well and will please all of your travelers. Some healthy suggestions include granola bars, pre-cut vegetables and hummus, string cheese and trail mix. Granola bars, hummus and nuts are packed with protein, which will keep your travelers fuller longer. 

4. Clean as you go.

Make mini garbage cans for the car
from cereal tupperware pourers.

Don’t wait until you’re packing up to come home to clean your car out. Make cleaning easy by giving each row of seats its own garbage can. Place a small garbage or grocery bag in a plastic tupperware container to make mini garbage cans. The container traps smells and is easy to empty each time you stop for gas.

5. Bring in-car entertainment.

Keeping children entertained is key to a successful road trip. Instead of relying on iPads and other electronics, create interactive games. For example, give each of your children a map to decorate as you travel. Each child can draw his or her favorite site for each state. At the end of the trip, each child's map will be different. Bonus:  the maps make great keepsakes and cute additions to photo albums of the trip.

Central Collision Center encourages you to drive carefully this 4th of July. Have a safe and happy holiday!