For Immediate Release

Carlisle Events Celebrates 35 Years by Gearing Up and Giving Back

Gearing Up for Corvettes at Carlisle – Giving Back to Charities and Non-Profit Causes

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

“Gearing Up and Giving Back”, that is the slogan that the Carlisle Events Family has embraced to celebrate 35 years of being the hosts of ten automotive events that bring over half a million automotive and motorcycle enthusiasts to the Carlisle PA Fairgrounds and to the Central Pennsylvania region each year.

Gearing Up –the Carlisle Events team, known to insiders as a family, is gearing up for the largest specialty event hosted at the Carlisle PA Fairgrounds each year: Corvettes at Carlisle. Corvettes at Carlisle, the world’s largest and most prestigious event celebrating America’s Sports Car, the Corvette, will race back to the fairgrounds this weekend, with a race reunion, special guest icon Mario Andretti – presented by MagnaFlow Exhaust – a street-legal, track-ready 2004 C5 LS1 Corvette giveaway, the unveiling of the 2010 Grand Sport by the GM engineering team, a fun field packed with over 3,000 Corvettes from all generations, activities for kids and women and much more.

Giving Back – “To be a responsible member of the communities in which we operate” is the second line in the Carlisle Events mission statement. The organization as a whole and their thirty full-time employees take that mission very seriously by donating time, resources and money to many charities and non-profit causes, not only during their show season but throughout the year. Whether it is a local branch of a national organization, small groups capitalizing on the generous guests attending an event held at the Carlisle PA Fairgrounds, or helping events within the community in which they operate with resources: Carlisle Events is giving back in many ways.

The Salvation Army of Carlisle is a branch of a national charitable organization that is also a major recipient of the generosity of Carlisle Events. Bill Miller Jr., Carlisle Events Founder and Co-Owner and Chairman of The Salvation Army Publicity Committee heads many of the projects that the two groups team up on including the car auctions at Spring and Fall Carlisle that raise over $60,000 with 100% proceeds going directly to the Salvation Army of Carlisle. Pat LaMarche, spokesperson for the Salvation Army of Carlisle said this when asked about the support from Carlisle Events, "The Salvation Army would not be able to deliver much needed services to our community without the support that Carlisle Events provides. Really there would always be a gap if even the smallest support were missing.” LaMarche continued, “Bill Miller and Carlisle Events literally shower us with time, expertise and resources. Over the past twelve months that support has been the equivalent of thousands of meals at our soup kitchen and dozens of nights of shelter. I don't know what it would be like for our clients here without this kindness; and I hope to never find out."

The good will from the fairgrounds can also be felt during the automotive events that take place at the fairgrounds. Jenn Martek, Executive Assistant with Carlisle Events runs the Women’s Oasis area throughout the season and makes a point to involve local charities whenever she can. “I think Carlisle Events is very generous in sharing its resources when it comes to giving back; it’s one of the reasons that I’m proud to work for the company.” In addition to giving women who attend the automotive events their own area to enjoy shopping and services aimed at female attendees, the Women’s Oasis hosts and raises money by donating space and hosting a bingo game in which 100% of the profits go back to aid organization participating at that particular event. Local charities that have benefited include the Downtown Carlisle Association, local Girl Scout troops, Paws, Furry Friends Network and PA Cancer Awareness Network.

Events in the local community that are made possible through the donation of resources from Carlisle Events include hosting and donating the use of chairs and tables to the United Way annual U-Turn and Yard Sales, Salvation Army Holiday Shop and Meal Distribution headquarters, local school science fairs and Toys for Tots campaigns. Every year in early July, Carlisle Events also donates the use of their 102-acre facility for the Carlisle Firework Display. This year’s show was salvaged through donations for the fireworks themselves and could not be held if not for the venue of the fairgrounds.

Additional Charitable donations and works include:

Chip Miller Charitable Foundation: Five annual events held to honor the memory of Carlisle Events Owner and Co-Founder Chip Miller, who passed away from the little known disease amyloidosis.

Major Supporter of the AACA Museum in Hershey

March of Dimes walk, Checkpoint Sponsor

United Way, Annual U-Turn Sale and Yard Sale Host

Host Toys for Tots Campaign at Fall Cruise-In

Carlisle Summerfair! Sponsor

Partner with the Downtown Carlisle Association in the annual Downtown Corvette Parade

Contributor in Newspapers in Education (NIE) program through The Sentinel

Police Summer Youth Basketball Camp Sponsor

Carlisle Kids Day Out Sponsor

Harrisburg Area Humane Society - Donation of space at Carlisle Bike Fest

Corvettes Conquer Cancer and the Spina Bifida Association of Greater Pennsylvania – donation of space at Corvettes at Carlisle

Donate Carlisle PA Fairgrounds for local car club events: CVCCC (Cumberland Valley Classic Car Club)

Cumberland County Red Cross and the annual “Ride for the Red”

Support of the MS Society – Central Penn Chapter

Support of Ride for Kids – Benefitting the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation

Donations of smaller amounts ($100) to multiple non-profits throughout the year

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Journalist note: Information about Carlisle Events, its event listings, auction offerings and the Carlisle Expo Center is available to journalists by phone:


Patrick Lemay
Company Communications Specialist
717-243-7855 ext. 116
patrick@carlisleevents.com

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