For Immediate Release

Media Contact:                                                                           

CHALLENGER SPACE CENTER ARIZONA NAMED A FINALIST IN

TOYOTA’S 2012 100 CARS FOR GOOD PROGRAM:

VOTING DAY SET FOR JUNE 21, 2012

Garnering enough Facebook votes in one day will bring new

Solar SySTEM outreach program to schools across Arizona

    Peoria, AZ – May 11, 2012 – Challenger Space Center Arizona announced today that it has been selected as one of 500 nonprofit finalists in Toyota’s 100 Cars for Good program, a major philanthropic initiative in which the automaker is giving 100 cars to 100 vehicles over the course of 100 days.  The Center was selected as a finalist from more than 4,000 applications nationwide.

Each day, beginning May 14, 2012, 100 Cars for Good will profile five finalists at www.100carsforgood.com.   Individual members of the public will be able to vote for the nonprofit they think can do the most good with a new vehicle.  The nonprofit with the most votes at the end of each day will win one of six Toyota models.  Runners-up will each receive a $1,000 cash grant from Toyota.

Challenger Space Center Arizona will be up for consideration on Thursday, June 21, 2012.

Arizona residents are encouraged to support Challenger Space Center Arizona in its quest for a new Toyota Sienna minivan.  If the Space Center receives the most votes and is awarded the vehicle, it will be used to take an exciting new solar system-themed outreach program called Solar SySTEM featuring giant inflatable planets on the road to children throughout the state.  The Center has a 1- in-5 chance of winning a new minivan.

“We are asking everyone to mark their Facebook calendars now and vote on Thursday, June 21,” said Kari Sliva, Executive Director of Challenger Space Center.  “The giant inflatable planets pack into crates, and we really are in need of a van to haul all of the equipment necessary to set the program up in gymnasiums and other locations.  The planets give children a sense of size and scale of our galaxy, and with the van we hope to bring the universe to thousands of children across Arizona.”

For more information on Challenger Space Center Arizona and its efforts to win one of Toyota’s 100 Cars for Good, please visit the Center’s website at www.azchallenger.org, Facebook page atwww.facebook.com/azchallenger, and Twitter at www.twitter.com/azchallenger.  For complete information on 100 Cars for Good and profiles of all 500 finalists, please visit www.100carsforgood.com, where you can request an email reminder to vote for your favorite organization.

“At Toyota, we appreciate what a significant impact a new car can have for nonprofits nationwide,” noted Michael Rouse, vice president of philanthropy for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A.  “Toyota has donated more than half a billion dollars to nonprofits across the U.S. over the past 20 years, and 100 Cars for Good allows us to expand that commitment to local communities in important new ways.  The 500 finalists are an extraordinary group, and we look forward to the public learning more about them.”

100 Cars for Good is the first initiative to directly engage the public to determine how Toyota’s philanthropic donations are awarded.  

A six-year, 100,000-mile powertrain warranty will also be provided for each vehicle, compliments of Toyota Financial Services.

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About Challenger Space Center Arizona

Challenger Space Center Arizona is a space and science museum, STEM education provider, and public charitable institution in its 12^th year of nonprofit service to the valley and state. More than 50,000 people visit the Center annually, including 30,000 students. Regular admission to the Center is $8 for adults, $7 for seniors (55+) and military, $5 for students (4-18), free for children ages 3 and under and Challenger Members.  Challenger Space Center is open from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. seven days a week. For more information, visit www.azchallenger.org or call 623-322-2001.