North American Car, Utility and Truck of the Year Awards $40,000 in Charitable Donations

DETROIT, June 23, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- The North American Car, Utility and Truck of the Year Awards (NACTOY) announced today that it has awarded $40,000 in scholarships and charitable donations to the College for Creative Studies (CCS) and Feeding America.

The charitable donations were made through a partnership between NACTOY and the North American International Auto Show (NAIAS). NACTOY jurors selected the recipients of these awards through a voting process that began with a list of respected charities and college scholarships and was narrowed down to the two recipients. 

"On behalf of the 50 members of the North American Car, Utility and Truck of the Year Award journalist jury, I want to sincerely thank NAIAS for its contribution of $20,000 toward these donations," said NACTOY president Gary Witzenburg. "Our organization is proud to be able to match that donation as we provide the first charitable donations in the history of our organization."

CCS and Feeding America will each receive a total of $20,000 from NACTOY and NAIAS.

"NACTOY has been a wonderful partner with NAIAS for many years and has supported our show by announcing its annual awards in Detroit," said Executive Director Rod Alberts. "We are pleased to be a part of these charitable donations because they deepen that relationship and will go to two great organizations."

The College for Creative Studies has created NACTOY Automotive Design Scholarships that will award $10,000 scholarships to two students over a two-year period. The recipients will be selected by the Transportation Design Department Chair, Paul Snyder.

"The College for Creative Studies Transportation Design Department is deeply grateful for the scholarship support offered by North American Car, Utility and Truck of the Year," Snyder said. "As we all know, these are extraordinary times, and several of our rising students are feeling the pinch of the COVID-19 pandemic more than others.  The support of NACTOY not only represents an investment in the future of car design, but also bears testament to the amazing generosity of our larger automotive community."

Feeding America® is the largest hunger-relief organization in the United States. It provides meals to more than 40 million people each year through a network of 200 food banks and 60,000 food pantries and meal programs.

ABOUT NORTH AMERICAN CAR, UTILITY AND TRUCK OF THE YEAR

The non-profit organization's awards are intended to recognize the most outstanding new vehicles of the year. The award-winning vehicles are benchmarks in their segments based on factors including innovation, design, safety, handling, driver satisfaction and value for the dollar. The organization gives out three awards annually. They are: "North American Car of the Year," "North American Truck of the Year," and "North American Utility Vehicle of the Year." The awards are unique because they are given by an independent jury of automotive journalists from the United States and Canada instead of by a single publication, website, radio or television station.

SOURCE North American Car, Utility and Truck of the Year Awards (NACTOY)