Every Jeep has a story.
For someone out there it may be the result of a long-held promise to graduate college. For another, it might be Saturday nights delivering meals to the less fortunate. Maybe your story is something you’ve experienced with your Jeep club or a cross-country trip with friends.
All these stories bind us. Captivate us. They prove to us that these iconic vehicles are something more than just hunks of metal clogging our driveways or invading our garages. In the process, they generate memories that last forever.
At The Quadratec Channel, we are all about the story. And we realize these great products we send out everyday to Jeep owners around the world can help make every story better – one shipment at a time.
Welcome to Tuesday's Tale - a Quadratec Channel Exclusive. On select Tuesdays in 2017, we will share someone's personal and passionate Jeep story in their own words. So come along for the ride and read all about what makes these vehicles so great for other Jeep enthusiasts. Or, even better, tell us your story: [email protected].
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For this week, we bring you the story of Cassie Hughes, marketing specialist at Bestop, and her relationship with a special Jeep in the Bestop lineup. It is not a super built-up crawler rig, although it is very capable. And it isn't something created to show off and promote various products in the Bestop arsenal - though it does incorporate some of the company's parts. No, this one was constructed to form a personal connection, both with Hughes and legions of others who have battled, or know someone who has battled, breast cancer.
Her story:
Cassie Hughes - 2dr JK Jeep Wrangler
Project Pink has been a labor of love for me. This idea started a few SEMA’s (Specialty Equipment Market Association trade show in Las Vegas) ago, to make a customized soft top as a fundraiser. After about a year of pushing the idea I finally received approval to make it happen.
Like many others, breast cancer touched my family. My mother was diagnosed with a very rare form of breast cancer. She lived alone in Lake Tahoe and was facing the prospect of a mastectomy and chemo/radiation after. My mom and I are extremely close and I wasn’t going to let her go through everything alone, so I packed up and moved to Tahoe for almost a year. I was fortunate enough that my job at the time allowed me to work remotely.
Long story short, she had a mastectomy and a few rounds of chemo, and is now cancer free!
This experience is the driving force behind Project Pink. I did a ‘kick-off’ post for #WarriorWednesday, where I invited others to share their stories. Unfortunately, I didn’t receive a lot of interest in people wanting to share their stories, but I believe it helped show how meaningful the cause was to us at Bestop.
The Build: We knew we could have some fun with this build, and that it needed to grab attention. Myself and our graphic designer, Brittany Conrad, worked with a local wrap shop here in Colorado – Ink Monstr.
They helped us design a great wrap that wasn’t your typical pink Jeep as we wanted it to stand out. In addition, Baja Designs sent us lighting and even powder coated the bezels pink to match the build. They sent a pair of XL 80’s and JK replacement fog lights, both with pink bezels.
For seat covers, we have the Bestop JK Seat Covers, but in the Muddy Girl Total Camo fabric. We don’t offer this option; it was made as a one-off for us. It also has Bestop High Rock Front and rear bumpers as well as Powerboards. The tires are 37’’ Mickey Thompson Baja MTZP3. For the soft tops, currently on the Jeep is the Customized Trektop Pro. This top has pink stitching, the breast cancer ribbon embroidered on the sides, and a Project Pink patch just above the rear window. The Pro will be available to win for 2-door JKs only. For 4-door JKs we are making a Trektop NX Twill with the same accents and patches in pink.
Two lucky winners will each win a one-of-a-kind customized soft top for their support of Project Pink.
You can purchase tickets for $3 each. You do need to specify if you want to purchase a 2-door ticket, 4-door ticket, or that you are donating to support the cause. You can buy as many tickets as you want throughout the life of this promotion. Bestop will cover all fees, including the credit card processing fee so your full $3 gets donated to American Cancer Society. Bestop will also match the total dollar amount of donations, up to $10,000!
We partnered with the ACS due to their stellar reputation and what they do for the community. All funds will be flagged to only go to needs for breast cancer, including awareness and research.
When the Jeep was finished, we visited the local Denver ACS office to show their staff, as well as take a few photos. Project Pink will be at multiple industry events this year, and a few ACS events as well.
The Jeep and this cause gets people interested. It is crazy to hear how many people have been affected by breast cancer, and how thankful they are that we are supporting the cause in such a huge way. Along the road, and at events, you will hear personal stories of breast cancer battles, and some who unfortunately lost that fight. It really opens your eyes to how many men and women are affected, and it reminds me daily of how lucky I am that my mom made it through her fight.
