Early electric car owner donates vehicle proceeds to the Local Community Food Centre
- Mar 19
- 3 min read
Malak Sidky, an early adopter of the electric car – the 755th electric vehicle sold in Ontario – recently decided to sell it through Donate A Car Canada and have the proceeds donated to the Local Community Food Centre (CFC).
In 2012, electric cars were still a novelty and Sidky said that soon after she purchased the car, she was stopped many times by curious people who wanted to know the range, whether she liked driving the car and how powerful it was. She believes the car served its purpose as a means of transportation and may even have made people more interested in being environmentally friendly.
“I’d like to think that I influenced people to think green,” she said.
But like any older car, Sidky said that after the brakes failed and the estimate to fix the car was $4,000, she decided it was time to move on and sell it. However, the resale value was not what she expected.
“It’s a 13-year-old car. It needs new brakes. I can’t sell it without the brakes, so I decided to see what else we could do with it,” said Sidky. “The car served me well over the years and required minimal maintenance. We figure the money saved on gas and oil changes more than paid off the cost of the car.”
Through online searches, Sidky found www.donatecar.ca, where anyone can donate the proceeds from their used cars to a charity of their choosing.
“I was delighted to find Donate-A-Car Canada. They took the time to listen to my desire to donate the car to the Local CFC in Stratford. They took care of all the arrangements,” said Sidky.
The one thing Sidky was worried about was transportation of the used vehicle. Donate A Car Canada took care of that as well.
“The lady on the phone took all the details and then said, depending on where you live, you can drop it off or have us come and pick it up,” said Sidky. “So I said, here’s the thing, it doesn’t have any brakes, so she actually connected me to a local tow truck company to transport the car to London, which was great.”
After the car was sold at an auction house in London, Sidky was advised of the amount received. She was then given a tax receipt, and Margaret Smart, executive director of the Local Community Food Centre, received the proceeds soon after to help support the organization.
“Every act of generosity helps build the kind of community we all want to live in,” said Smart. “Malak shows up every Monday to volunteer for our community meal prep, knowing that every carrot chopped and every hour given helps meet real needs through the Local CFC. Now, by donating the proceeds from her car auction, she’s found yet another way to strengthen our ability to make good food accessible to everyone in our community. Thank you, Malak!”
Although it can sometimes be hard to know how to make a difference in the community, Sidky said donating her car was one way she knew she could help.
“It was emotional for me. I loved that car, but now I know it has a new home and the charity I chose and love has money to help out,” said Sidky. “The Local does phenomenal work to help the community throughout the year. I love volunteering there, so it made sense to me to help out financially as well.”
To learn more about Donate A Car Canada, visit www.donatecar.ca
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