Hometown veteran honored with keys to new vehicle at Fort Worth Botanic Garden Charlie Company Vietnam War Memorial
Photo News Release | November 4, 2021
Wells Fargo and the Helpful North Texas Honda Dealers donated a 2021 Honda Passport through Military Warriors Support Foundation
FORT WORTH, TEXAS – Nov. 3, 2021 – For combat-wounded veterans, transitioning from the military back to civilian life can be a challenge. That, combined with the cost of a new vehicle, can put added burdens on our nation’s military service members and their families. To help, Wells Fargo teamed up with the Helpful North Texas Honda Dealers and Military Warriors Support Foundation to present a payment-free 2021 Honda Passport to former U.S. Marine Corps Sergeant James W. Adair on Wednesday, Nov. 3, at the Fort Worth Botanic Garden Charlie Company Vietnam War Memorial.
“Our current vehicle is much older and has been costly to repair. This vehicle will give our family reliable and dependable transportation,” Adair said. “Having a payment-free vehicle, and the mentorship program provided with it, will help us reach our goal to become debt-free in the future.”
The donation was made through Military Warriors Support Foundation’s Transportation4Heroes program, which awards payment-free vehicles and provides one year of family and financial mentorship to combat-wounded veterans and Gold Star families. Through the T4H program, they have enabled Well Fargo vehicle recipients and their families to pay off over $740,000 in pre-existing debt.Former U.S. Marine Corps Sergeant James W. Adair was born and raised in Fort Worth, Texas. James joined the military after high school in Arlington, Texas, in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks. He served four years of active duty with the U.S. Marine Corps, including two tours in Iraq. During his first tour in 2004, Adair was wounded while supporting combat operations and received the Purple Heart for his injuries. In 2005, he was deployed again to Iraq and his vehicle convoy was hit with several improvised explosive device (I.E.D.) strikes. Sergeant Adair was Honorably Discharged from the Marine Corps in October 2006. In addition to being honored with a Purple Heart, he received the Combat Action Ribbon, an Iraq Campaign Medal and other awards for his service. In the future, Adair hopes to mentor veterans that have gone through similar situations. Sergeant Adair currently lives in Aledo, Texas, with his wife and two children.Wells Fargo Auto, a division of Wells Fargo Consumer Lending, started its Sponsored Vehicle Donation Program in 2015. Since then, we have worked with auto dealerships across the country to sponsor the donation of more than 50 payment-free vehicles, including 11 in Texas, and to provide family and financial mentoring, valued at over $1.5 million, to combat-wounded veterans and Gold Star families through Military Warriors Support Foundation’s Transportation4Heroes program.About Wells FargoWells Fargo & Company (NYSE: WFC) is a leading financial services company that has approximately $1.9 trillion in assets, proudly serves one in three U.S. households and more than 10% of small businesses in the U.S., and is the leading middle market banking provider in the U.S. We provide a diversified set of banking, investment and mortgage products and services, as well as consumer and commercial finance, through our four reportable operating segments: Consumer Banking and Lending, Commercial Banking, Corporate and Investment Banking, and Wealth & Investment Management. Wells Fargo ranked No. 37 on Fortune’s 2021 rankings of America’s largest corporations. In the communities we serve, the company focuses its social impact on building a sustainable, inclusive future for all by supporting housing affordability, small business growth, financial health, and a low-carbon economy. News, insights, and perspectives from Wells Fargo are also available at Wells Fargo Stories.Additional information may be found at www.wellsfargo.com | Twitter: @WellsFargo.About Military Warriors Support FoundationMilitary Warriors Support Foundation is a 501(c)(3) non-profit charity, founded by LTG Leroy Sisco (Ret), in 2007. Their mission is to provide programs that facilitate a smooth and successful transition for our nation’s combat-wounded heroes and Gold Star families. Their programs focus on housing and homeownership, recreational activities, transportation assistance and leadership development. Through select programs, they have awarded nearly 900 mortgage-free homes and over 100 payment-free vehicles to combat-wounded heroes, Gold Star spouses, and their families in all 50 states. In addition to the home or vehicle, the families receive family and financial mentoring. For more information, visit MilitaryWarriors.org.About North Texas Honda DealersThe North Texas Honda Dealers Association, made up of 17 local dealerships in the region, has dispatched its popular Helpful Honda guys in blue to surprise North Texas residents with Random Acts of Helpfulness every week for more than 4 years. Since 2017, the North Texas Honda Dealers have been demonstrating, firsthand, that they are truly Helpful… no strings attached. The Helpful Honda guys surprise residents in unexpected and meaningful ways -- including volunteering and donating to food banks; handing out reusable face masks and hand sanitizers at public locations; providing kids with free books and supplies as they go back to school; pumping and paying for drivers’ gas as prices spike; rewarding outstanding teachers over Teacher Appreciation Week; helping our four-legged friends find forever homes; and much more.For more information on Helpful Honda, please visit facebook.com/NTXHondaDealers and Twitter @NTXHondaDealers for fun clues around where we will bring Random Acts of Helpfulness next!About Fort Worth Botanic Garden | Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT®)The Fort Worth Botanic Garden (FWBG) is the oldest public botanic garden in Texas with beautiful theme gardens, including the Fuller Garden, Rose Garden, Japanese Garden, and the Victor and Cleyone Tinsley Garden, which features plants native to north central Texas. The Botanical Research Institute of Texas (BRIT®) is a nonprofit, international research, education and conservation organization that collects and safeguards plant specimens, studies and protects living plants, and teaches about the importance of conservation and biodiversity to the world. BRIT assumed nonprofit management of the Fort Worth Botanic Garden Oct. 1, 2020. The combined organization comprises 120 acres in Fort Worth’s Cultural District two miles west of downtown Fort Worth at 3220 Botanic Garden Blvd., Fort Worth, Texas 76107.Media Contact InformationWells FargoCamille Brewer, 832-207-2864camille.brewer@wellsfargo.com@WellsFargoMilitary Warriors Support FoundationJohn Hill, 210-615-8973 ext. 112Media@militarywarriors.org@WarriorsSupportNorth Texas Honda DealersDestin Judy, 859-913-6983destin@remarqinc.com@NTXHondaDealersFort Worth Botanic GardensChris Smith, 817-546-8691csmith@brit.org@BRIT_org