Attendees of a recent RCRI Annual Conference gather to hear the keynote address.

The Resource Center for Religious Institutes (RCRI) held their 2024 RCRI Annual Conference at the Rosen Centre Hotel in Orlando, Florida from Oct. 1 – Oct. 4. Caritas Vehicle Services has participated in the RCRI Conference for many years, and was honored to be invited to host a workshop at this year’s convening.

The conference is known for being a highly informative and collaborative event. Each year, representatives from RCRI member organizations are given the opportunity to network with peers, develop new partnerships, and learn about a variety of resources from service providers and RCRI partners like Caritas.

NASA reported on August 14 that July 2023 was the hottest month globally in their records. The report is yet another reminder of the international climate emergency that looms over all of our human activities.

On the heels of this report, among others, have been calls for individuals to keep track of and work to reduce or offset their carbon footprint. While individual consumers are not wholly responsible for the climate crisis, everyone does have a carbon footprint.

According to a recent Caritas Vehicle Services survey, one of the current challenges in managing transportation for Religious Communities is not having the budget needed to replace all of their old, high-mileage vehicles. This is a growing problem that requires a creative financial solution. The following Case Study highlights how one Community devised a workable solution for "renewing" their vehicle fleet.

To explore recent developments in the auto industry, we interviewed our Director of Fleet Management, Brad Forbush. Brad has 40 years of experience in the auto industry and 10 years of service at Caritas Vehicle Services.

The conditions of the automotive marketplace have changed dramatically since the beginning of the Covid pandemic and the global supply chain crisis.  In our interview, Brad recommends strategies that will help when you need to purchase a new vehicles despite certain challenges in today's market.

What is a carbon footprint?

Everything we do requires some output of energy. Every time you switch on a light, access the Internet, or, in the case of fleets, every time you or your driver start up a car -- you are using energy. When going about our daily lives constantly using energy, greenhouse gases are released.

The sum of your greenhouse gas output over the course of a year is your carbon footprint. It varies individual to individual, but everyone has one.

Here are several indisputable facts:

• The Earth rotates on an axis around the Sun
• Water is wet
• The globe is warming at an unprecendented rate, causing a myriad of issues from global ice caps melting to rampant wildfires in Australia and the U.S.

The statements above are scientific facts. According to Climate.gov, "... the combined land and ocean temperature has increased at an average rate of 0.14 degrees Fahrenheit (0.08 degrees Celsius) per decade since 1880; however, the average rate of increase since 1981 (0.18°C / 0.32°F) has been more than twice that rate."¹

As I’m sure you’ve either read or heard about in the news, the entire U.S. business economy continues to be negatively impacted by major disruptions in our product supply chain, and the auto industry is being affected by a shortage of semi-conductor computer chips, which are used to operate each vehicle’s onboard computer system.

When that check engine light goes on in the car it immediately elicits a groan from the driver. In one instance, it was Sister Mary Kay’s car and she was the one groaning about her 2008 Toyota Camry. She was starting to lose her power steering, so she took her car into the small local shop where she’s had her car serviced for the past 10 years. The mechanic found a few other problems and presented a repair estimate of $1,357.  Sr. Mary Kay called her Community’s Vehicle Coordinator, Jerry, who suggested that Sr. Mary Kay obtain a second opinion from a different shop, so she took her car to a local Goodyear shop, which is a large national auto service provider. Goodyear’s estimate was $2,550 for a list of repairs that included everything the local shop found plus several other high cost items.  Now Sr. Mary Kay was confused and unsure of what she should do, so she made another call to Jerry.

How you can improve your gas mileage, save money, and help protect the environment, all at the same time... 

 An article from the website sheknows.com lists 10 great tips on how to achieve all three, in addition to making your daily driving experience a whole lot easier on you and the vehicle you drive.

   PARATRANSIT VAN 

As the average age of drivers who live in Religious Communties continues to rise, the need to provide transportation that can accommodate wheelchairs and scooters also increases. While some look toward public transportation or a car service, many Communities are looking at a more cost effective approach for transporting members who are no longer driving.

This was the conundrum facing one of our CARITAS clients, a community of Women Religious who wondered if there was a more practical way to take their Sisters to doctor appointments, shopping, or just to see the holiday lights.  While car pooling in a normal minivan might work for some, the Sisters who must use wheelchairs are often not able to enjoy these outings. So, here's what we did . . .