Progressive Provides Cars to More than 100 Military Families in Need November 9

Progressive’s Keys to Progress Event to Give Away 500th Vehicle in Fifth Year

Live Event Honors Veterans with 68 Events Countrywide

MAYFIELD VILLAGE, Ohio — Nov. 1, 2017 — Sometimes, a reliable set of wheels is all that stands between a veteran and their dreams. This month, more than 100 veterans and their families will be getting keys to newly-refurbished vehicles as part of Progressive’s fifth annual Keys to Progress^® event. This year, Progressive will donate its 500th vehicle. The vehicle giveaways will occur on November 9 at 68 locations across the country, including Progressive Service Centers, one-stop facilities where Progressive handles claims and coordinates repairs for customers.

Progressive works with local National Auto Body Council member body shops to refurbish and donate vehicles for the Keys to Progress program.

Progressive’s Keys to Progress program offers military families reliable transportation to get on the road and move forward in life. According to the U.S. Department of Transportation, approximately forty percent of veterans live in rural areas where transportation options are limited, and where it’s necessary for them to travel far to receive medical care, reach employment centers, and access other services to which they are entitled.

“We’re excited to be celebrating our fifth year of giving back to veterans through our Keys to Progress program. This is one way we support our country’s military,” said Mike Sieger, Claims group president. "For many veterans, transportation to work, school, medical appointments or even social events can be a hardship and we recognize their need for reliable transportation so they can live the life they deserve.”

“Without a car, I had to work evenings and overnights to accommodate my husband’s work schedule, which meant I often missed important times with my family,” said, Cody Hall, Navy veteran and 2016 Keys to Progress recipient. “My family means the world to me and receiving this car provided me the freedom to get a day job so I could spend more time with them.”

Progressive works with numerous organizations to make Keys to Progress donations a reality:

• National Auto Body Council member body shops volunteer staff, resources and thousands of hours of collective time to repair the vehicles free-of-charge to veterans.
• Enterprise Rent-A-Car provides the first six months of insurance for each donated vehicle. Policies are written by Progressive.
• Veracity Research Co. Investigations, a veteran-owned and operated organization, helps support the recipient selection process each year.
• The Original 1-800-Charity Cars, donates resources to facilitate titling and registration of vehicles for recipients.
• Copart and Insurance Auto Auctions, Inc., a business unit of KAR Auction Services, Inc., national salvage companies we work with, donate some of the vehicles.
• Preferred Warranties Inc., another KAR business unit, provides a one-year warranty for most donated vehicles
• Local charities help to identify veteran recipients in each region.

Keys to Progress events occur in the following cities:

• Arizona: Phoenix, Tempe, Tucson
• California: Fresno, Pasadena, Sacramento, San Diego, San Francisco Bay Area (Walnut Creek)
• Colorado: Colorado Springs, Denver
• Connecticut: Hartford (Newington), New Haven (Milford)
• Florida: Ft. Lauderdale (Tamarac), Ft. Myers, Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando (Altamonte Springs), Tampa (Brandon, Riverview), West Palm Beach
• Georgia: Atlanta (Decatur, Marietta, Norcross)
• Iowa: Des Moines
• Illinois: Chicago
• Indiana: Indianapolis
• Kansas: Kansas City
• Kentucky: Louisville
• Louisiana: Baton Rouge, New Orleans (Metairie)
• Maryland: Baltimore
• Massachusetts: Boston (Westwood)
• Michigan: Detroit (Livonia, Sterling Heights)
• Minnesota: Minneapolis (Burnsville, Coon Rapids)
• Missouri: St. Louis (Bridgeton)
• Nebraska: Omaha (La Vista)
• Nevada: Las Vegas
• New Jersey: Rutherford, South Plainfield
• New York: Albany, Buffalo, New York (Brooklyn)
• Ohio: Akron, Cincinnati (Sharonville), Cleveland (Mayfield Village, Parma), Columbus, Dayton
• Oklahoma: Oklahoma City
• Oregon: Portland
• Pennsylvania: Harrisburg, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia (Malvern, Willow Grove)
• Rhode Island: Providence
• Texas: Austin, Dallas/Fort Worth (Arlington, Lewisville, Mesquite), El Paso, Houston, Lubbock, San Antonio
• Utah: Salt Lake City (Midvale)
• Virginia: Springfield, Virginia Beach
• Washington, D.C. (Silver Spring, MD)
• Washington: King County (Federal Way), Seattle (Lynnwood)
• Wisconsin: Milwaukee

*Some cities have multiple events and give away more than one vehicle.

What’s next? Year six of Keys to Progress in November 2018! Veterans interested in next year’s Keys to Progress event need to be sponsored by a veteran-friendly non-profit organization to submit their request. If unfamiliar with an organization, veterans can visit VA.gov to find a local veteran office or contact their local VFW post. Applications are reviewed starting in May of each program year. To request an application, non-profit organizations may send an email to [email protected]. For more information on Keys to Progress, visit KeysToProgress.com or #KeysToProgress.