The owners of many local Subaru dealerships are encouraging budding tradespeople to pursue a career in the automotive industry by making a major donation towards their education.
With two generations of Okanagan College alumni in the family, the Lunellis decided to give back to B.C.’s second largest trades training institution.
Tony and Franca Lunelli, founders of Anthony’s Subaru, have pledged $50,000 to the Bright Horizons - Building for Skills fundraising campaign, which has a goal of $7 million.
In a release, the College said the donation will go towards a classroom space in the new Trades Training Complex currently under construction at the Kelowna campus.
“Skilled technicians are always in demand in our industry,” said Franca Lunelli, in the release. “Tony and I are firm believers in the importance of education, and so we’re delighted to support the College and the automotive apprentices of the future.”
“This generous gift to Okanagan College and its students is all the more meaningful given the Lunelli family’s long history with the College,” said Kathy Butler, Executive Director of the Okanagan College Foundation, also in a statement. “We are so grateful for their support and appreciate the wonderful connection they have built as alumni, mentors, and donors.”
Tony Lunelli began working as an auto-technician, going on to sales for more than a decade. He opened 5th Avenue Auto in West Kelowna in 1981. After purchasing the Anthony’s Subaru property, he opened in 1995 and started a second Subaru dealership in Penticton in 1998.
Lunelli’s children, Christina Bailey and Anthony Lunelli Jr., who both went to Okanagan College, started new Anthony’s Subaru dealerships in Penticton in 2000 and Kelowna in 2014.
Automotive Service Technicians (AST) is one of the top three trade’s sector occupations in the Okanagan, according to a recent survey. The College says demand is expected to remain strong, with a demand for more than new 1,100 technicians provincially between now and 2024.
Currently, more than 200 automotive students train at the College per year.
They expanded their automotive shop last year, as part of the $33-million renovation and expansion of its trade’s facilities that will wrap up next spring with the opening of the new complex.
The new complex will accommodate more than 2,600 students and will provide the College’s trades students with new labs, classrooms, study and food service space.
The fundraising campaign’s goal of $7 million will add to the Provincial Government’s $28-million investment in the project.
More information about the campaign’s current needs and opportunities to support students is available on their website.
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