Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

Dealer ads save school sports, art programs
Strapped district planned hefty student fees, but Skillman reached out to "future customers'
In addition to helping fund programs in the local school district, auto dealer Ray Skillman helps out the LIttle League, too. He gets an appreciative hug from one of the players.

Indiana auto dealer Ray Skillman was incensed.
He had just heard that his local school system was so strapped for funds that it was going to charge students a fee to play football this fall.
Forget that, he decided. Instead, he tapped the advertising budget for his dealership group, which has 17 franchises spread over nine locations outside Indianapolis.
"We told the school system, "We'll pay for it,'" Skillman says. ""All of it: the football programs, the other sports programs, the school bands, the art programs. Just add it up. We'll pay for it.'"
Before local football practice started this summer, a deal emerged with the Center Grove Community School Corp. amounting to a $1 million-plus advertising contract. For five years, Ray Skillman Auto Group will pay $210,000 a year for sports, plus another $10,000 a year for the school system's fine arts programs, including school bands, drama clubs and choirs.
With that arrangement, the school board in the unincorporated community 10 miles south of Indianapolis has dropped its plan to charge every high school athlete and cheerleader in the district $170 a season to participate. Middle school athletes were going to be levied $80, arts program participants were to be hit with their own fees, and some coaching salaries were in question until Skillman picked up the tab.
"Real budget issues'
"We've had some real budget issues," says Richard Arkanoff, superintendent of the eight-school, 7,800-student system. "The decision to charge those fees was a tough one. But Mr. Skillman called up my board president one day out of the blue. He told her he'd been thinking about how hard it would be for a working family to come up with $170, or for somebody who might be making minimum wage. He said he wanted to take care of all the fees."
And Skillman's gift has been followed by others. Says Arkanoff: "He's really opened the door for us. Since he stepped in, a local hospital also came in to advertise and pay for some new stadium bleachers. And we're now talking to two more entities."
In return for Skillman Auto Group's funding, Center Grove will allow Skillman to advertise his auto group around the sports program. The football scoreboard will contain a message from Ray Skillman Auto Group. The stadium's concession stand will bear words from Skillman, as will the basketball court scoreboard. Other specifics are being ironed out as the Center Grove Trojans kick off their fall games.
"It seems like the whole world has fallen on hard times," says Skillman, 70 and the grandfather of 13. "Our teachers don't earn enough. Our policemen and firefighters don't earn enough. More businesses need to get involved with their community."
"We spend millions on advertising," Skillman says of his auto group. "So we understand advertising, and we know who are our market is.
"But this is also our community. I have five franchises in Center Grove, and also sell hundreds of used cars there," he says.
His auto group, with 750 employees, expects to retail about 19,000 new and used vehicles this year.
"When that stadium is full on a Friday night, those are my future customers. They are the parents of my future customers. They are my current customers. They're our current employees and the families of our employees. They are our future employees -- salespeople, technicians, phone operators and managers. We have to compete for good employees. We'd hire 100 people today if we could find the right F&I people, the right technicians and the right personnel," he says.
"So will we get any return on our investment?" he asks. "Yes, we're going to get a huge return."
He says that over the summer, his stores had customers come in to shop, buy vehicles or use the service departments in response to the news of Skillman's sponsorship plan.
Hated school, loved cars
Truth be told, he confesses, he hated school as a youngster growing up in Owensboro, Ky. He didn't like studying and got poor grades. All he cared about, he says, was cars. He recalls telling his mother at age 7 that he intended to grow up and become a car dealer, prompting her to cry.
By age 18, he opened a used-car dealership, working on the side as a drag racer and a NASCAR racer. In 1979 he moved to Indianapolis to become a partner in an Oldsmobile store. He stayed for two years, then settled in the quiet community of Center Grove, his home ever since.
The greater Indianapolis market has been good to him, even during the industry upheaval of the past three years. Since 2009, Skillman has added five area dealerships. They were a combination of established dealers deciding to get out of the business after years of better times, dealers whose operations were failing and one store that became available through a factory retail reorganization.
Ray Skillman Auto Group now includes three Kia franchises, three Mitsubishis, two Mazdas, two Hyundais, two Buick-GMCs, and one each for Ford, Chevrolet and Suzuki. All operate in communities outside Indianapolis. He is preparing to build a new store for his Chevrolet franchise at an estimated cost of $4 million.
A year ago, Skillman tested the waters of sponsoring high school sports on a much smaller scale. He donated money to the Franklin Central Flashes, the high school sports program in the small, financially strapped community of Franklin Township, Ind., where his Chevrolet store operates. The stadium scoreboard now displays the Skillman Chevrolet logo.
"Liked the idea'
"I really liked the idea of doing that," Skillman said recently, taking a break from a day of drag racing at a track in Kentucky with his son and grandson. "I talked to all the managers and partners at our stores about it, and we decided we needed to do a lot more of it.
"Traditional advertising got us where we are today and we don't intend to pull back from that. But all over the country, school systems are struggling to get by. I think the auto business needs to do a better job of supporting local school systems.
"Schools represent the future of our communities, and the future of our business markets," he says.
"If we don't have better schools, what kind of business communities are we going to be operating in?
"If things keep going as we hope here, we intend to become a lot more involved with the schools in every community where we operate."

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

The article I just posted is from the current Issue of
Crains AUTOMOTIVE NEWS
Drag Races should be proud to have a guy like Ray around!

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

Great Article!! And just think he races those EVIL Cobra Jet Mustangs.... :D

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

Talk about put your money where your mouth is, that is "Outstanding" Well done to the Skillmam Group !

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

Yeah but he is NOT afraid to put the "Hammer" down on every run. People like him are more of what this country needs.

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

That is wonderful!! This type of generosity should be played out in the media across the country. These good works is what this country was built on. I don't know the Skillman's, but what a great move. God Bless them in their business and racing career's.




Bret Velde

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

And we told you a few months ago, before we knew all of this, that they are some of the nicest people we have ever met!

Drew (one of the 13 grandchildren) is here in Columbus this weekend racing in Stock and SuperStock. Ray, Bill, and Drew are all really nice guys!

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

I agree!!

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

God bless Mr. Skillman!
Bob Rice

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

This is a great thing Mr. Skillman is doing, and he should be reccognized. I do however feel the word "hero" should only be used in the life or death arena. i.e. someone risking their life to save another. I'm sure a man of Mr. Skillman's stature would agree with me. Maybe he has a little discount program within his business to help out heroes looking for a new car/truck. Either way, great job Mr. Skillman and thanks for the racing support as well.

Wade Mahaffey

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

It's nice to hear great stories like this , Ray Skillman you are a Hero.
Too bad we couldn't get more people & business to help in these tough Times ... Thanks for supporting those programs ....

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

A true businessman always has heart!!!!! And they usually recognize many times the true bottom line is a much bigger picture than the actual bottom line. My hat is off to Mr. Skillman...and hope other businessmen throughout our country can follow Ray's leadership.:)

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

It has been asked," What's the difference between a philanthropist and a politician?"
The answer is," A philanthropist puts his money where his mouth is. A politician puts YOUR money where HIS mouth is!!"

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

This story makes me want to go buy a Ford from Mr. Skillman.

I as a Senior had to pay for sports and this was truely appreciated by myself. I knew what I wanted and had to work harder at it to get it.

What a huge move on Ray Skillmans part!

Thumbs down for all the lottery money being stolen from the system.....Lets not forget why Ray Skillman had to step up...

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

This was an outstanding accomplishment and money well spent! Nothing like stepping up to the plate!

Mike Keener

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

See, this is why you don't punish people for being successful by taking all their money in taxes.

This is a perfect example of the American entrepreneur. This is what most of them do. Here is a guy who employs 700 people in his community, and wants to employ another 100. And then he spends his advertising money in a way that helps the schools of his community.


Well done Ray Skillman, well done.

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

Now if the school system can just identify where the money they SHOULD have had to fund these programs is going and correct it all will be even BETTER. It shouldnt be up to an outside fund(congrats to Skillman) to make up for poor money management by the school system. It like the City closing 3 or 4 year old NEW schools because there were no children in the area to fill the schools. Planning?

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

It is a pleasure to know the Skillmans. They are a class act.

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

What a great story and people like Ray Skillman is why it is great to live in the USA!

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

Agreed! Ray is a Patriot! He is doing things to make his county, state and country better. That is a Patriot! Kudos to you Mr. Skillman! Jim


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Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

I could tell you stories all day of Ray's generosity. I live close to the Ford dealership and deliver to his Indy area stores. His employees respect him because he has done about every job at a car dealership. He has worked the wash bay and everything in between. You can stop by the muscle car shop any day and he has an old t shirt on getting dirty. I knew that when he started running stock it might take awhile to gain everyones acceptance but Ray,Bill and Drew are good people. Man! I wish my company could get his oil business! Valvoline would look good on those cars.:D

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

That's what seperates us from the rest of the world,especially the "elite" european
union states.Mr Skillman seems to be a great American and businessman.

Re: Ray Skillman a HERO!
 

All anyone can say is "Wonderful"......