Loyalty has paid off in Kalispell Automotive Group’s annual fundraiser for local schools.

This year marks the 10th anniversary of the program, in which the automotive group behind Kalispell Ford, Toyota and Volkswagen donates a $30,000 car to schools and they sell $10 raffle tickets for the prize. The winner this year was Bob Lopp, a Kalispell resident who has participated in the fundraiser for all 10 years.

“It has been pretty crazy,” Marketing Director Kayla Ping said. She related that Lopp, who chose a 2020 Toyota Tundra for his prize, only bought one ticket this year.

His name was drawn at the Crosstown basketball game Friday night and he took possession of his new vehicle Monday. Lopp has three children in the Kalispell School District, so he knows the importance of the fundraiser for local students.

Since 2011, Kalispell Automotive Group has donated a $30,000 vehicle credit to the schools and students have turned around and sold $10 raffle tickets, keeping all of the proceeds for the school or a specific student group. This year, the fundraiser reached $1 million total raised through the program.

The winner can pick a vehicle from the auto group’s three Kalispell dealerships, although Ping said they almost always choose a Toyota.

She explained the program is an opportunity for the schools to raise money for band and choir trips, visits to Washington, D.C., or new sports equipment. “They could turn a $30,000 [donation] into $300,000,” Ping noted.

This year, the fundraiser raised more than $113,000, the most the program has ever raised in one year. Ping said the total has grown year after year since dealership owner Gerrid Gandrud first debuted the program at Kalispell School District.

The decade-old event started when Gandrud met with school administrators in 2011 to see what their needs were and how the local business could help. The administrators made a list of different practical needs such as new technology and equipment, and at the bottom they jokingly asked for a new car.

Gandrud took the request seriously and spoke with a few fellow car dealers in places like Idaho. He quickly came up with a program that would answer this wish. Since then, Kalispell Automotive Group has given away ten cars and helped local students raise thousands of dollars for their activities.

Ping said some schools and groups excel in the fundraiser more than others, like Kalispell Middle School, which consistently outsells all of the high schools combined every year. This year, the middle school raised more than $52,000.

Ping said Kalispell School District is “the district that takes the most advantage of it.”

Students mostly sell tickets at events like the Northwest Montana State Fair.

One Kalispell Middle School history class alone raised $21,000 for a trip to D.C. this year.

“This is their No. 1 fundraiser,” she pointed out.

Ping said the group hopes “to continue to do this as long as the students want to participate.”

“We want it to grow,” she added. “We keep getting schools to buy in and participate.”

Reporter Bret Anne Serbin may be reached at bserbin@dailyinterlake.com or 758-4459.