At University Honda, one thing that keeps our employees one their toes is our customers’ random acts of edible kindness. Yes that’s right, customers dropping off food for our employees can many times be the highlight of the day. Usually, customers and friends of the dealership will drop off food to say “thanks” for a recent repair or purchase experience, (pictured above: 36 corndogs w/ ketchup and mustard). Other times, we’ve had people bake more exquisite items such as cakes, pies and cookies (pictured below). But no matter the reason, when free food arrives at U-honda, our staff is immediately altered. Usually, an employee will hear about the food from someone who has taken a “sudden” break and already taken a huge bit of the free feast. You can almost make out what is available and where it is, as they speak with their mouth full: “Whoa wor en hwall whak woom.”

Food has been a long time bonding element with employees at University Honda. Every Thanksgiving, the whole Dealership enjoys a Thanksgiving feast together on site. Other times, employees will organize potluck lunches, with everyone bringing something they love to eat. Recently, Ron Theis celebrated his 60th birthday at the dealership. On that special day, 17 Pizzas were ordered and shared with the entire U-honda staff. This might have been the dealership’s biggest Pizza party to date, and one of the rare times where the food didn’t run out in 10 min. So, in the spirit of beating a dead horse, University Honda loves free food, and anytime you feel the urge to bless the team with an unexpected snack, we promise to go crazy!

Over the 23 years that University Honda has been in business, we’ve discovered two other “University Hondas” in the country. One is in Montana, and the other is in Davis, California. Recently, we were happy to have the Rizzo family (Dave, Sarah, Celia, Toni, and their yorkshire terrier “Harry”) visit our store while on a road trip from Davis, CA to Port Angeles, WA. Being Davis California residents, Dave and Sarah Rizzo regularly serviced their 2001 Honda Odyssey at the Davis “University Honda.” But on their recent vacation to Washington, our dealership was there when they needed us!

The Rizzo’s have a long tradition of taking road trips, having driven their Honda as far as Wisconsin. Before this trip, they made a stop by their local University Honda in Davis to have their van checked out; making sure it was ready for a west coast tour. Dave and Sarah learned their van had a transmission problem, and were told to carry extra transmission fluid to get them through the trip. Dave Rizzo is on faculty at UC Davis, so while traveling up I-5, he decided to stop by Oregon State and see some longtime colleagues. The next morning however, their transmission fluid level was very low. In an effort to keep things moving toward Washington, they bought two more quarts of tranny fluid at the Shell station. The Shell attendant took notice of their problem and told them to bring their van by University Honda, (Corvallis). The attendant proceeded to tell them how great we are, so we’d like to thank our unknown ally.

This was on a Saturday, which is a great day to bring your car into our service dept. Upon further examination, we determined the Rizzo’s transmission problem had gotten worse, and would need a major repair. Our service advisor Jeff McCulloch presented them with multiple options. One of which was to let us deal with the problem, while they trade their current van in for a new vehicle. Their van was getting up there in miles, and the thought of paying for an expensive repair didn’t make a lot of sense.

Our sales representative Lou Magguili was able to present some options with new Odysseys. After a couple test drives, the Rizzo’s decided that if the numbers could line up, they would rather take a brand new Odyssey to finish their trip. We were able to structure a proposal that allowed the Rizzo’s to get a brand new van with 0$ down, and keeping their payments roughly the same! I asked Dave what he was the most excited about with having the new van, and the whole family responded “The iPod connection.” On long trips, it must be important to have high quality sound going directly into their car’s stereo as apposed to using other aftermarket adapters and accessories. We’re sure they didn’t mind the brand new warranty, body style, and reduction in miles either.

This really was a fun and unique experience for us at University Honda (Corvallis). We were able to help somebody in the middle of a long trip, and it was really interesting to see our name “University Honda” and all of their prior service records and documents. We asked them if their transmission problem would go down as a low point, or high point of their trip, and they all said, “A high point”. The Rizzo’s had such a good experience that they even gave their salesperson, Lou, a bottle of wine as a parting gift! So after helping the Rizzo’s transfer all of their luggage from one van to another, they were on their way (with Harry sitting shotgun). We would like to thank the Rizzo family, Dave Sarah and kids, for allowing us to play a part in their family vacation and giving us the opportunity to earn their business. We hope the rest of the trip was that much sweeter in a brand new Honda Odyssey.

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Written by Ladeene Ladue

Amelia is a seven year old Blue Healer with a unique ability. Amelia belongs to our long time customer, Sara Power, who has been servicing her vehicle at University Honda for the past 22 years. Amelia has been at her side for the last seven. It’s not unusual to see customers bring their dogs into the dealership, as they are always welcome to do so…but Amelia, the dog, is different. Any one who has seen her in our waiting room will tell you, with a giant smile, why. Amelia can watch TV! She pays attention with enthusiasm and alert energy. Her favorite programs center on other animals. She will sit for hours close to the screen excited to see others from her animal kingdom.

“We don’t get the Animal Planet channel at home, so when we visit Uhonda, we always watch it in your waiting room,” says Sara. “It’s true! Amelia will watch TV, glued to the show, only braking concentration to say ‘Hello’ to a new customer or an interested employee! Her favorite animals are kittens. She will try to get as close to the screen as possible in an attempt to interact with the four footed friends she sees, and will even responds to the ‘mood music’ of the program, or a commercial! If Amelia hears the music from a certain commercial she likes, she’ll get up from her nap just to watch it. And there is always an animal involved,” explains Sara.

Amelia’s favorite movie is “The Bear”. Sara says that she watches the entire movie from start to finish, and even reacts to the suspenseful parts by cowering! We enjoy Amelia and want to thank Sara for introducing her to us, and being a loyal customer. Perhaps we should introduce both of them to our new “Dog Car”. The Element is designed specifically for dog lovers and their dogs. With a dog ramp, specially designed water bowl, and cushy netted bed the Element is the vehicle for dogs on the go! The only thing missing for Amelia is the television. But even that can be purchased and installed