Community Involvement in Stevens Point, WI
D&D Automotive Community Events
At D&D Automotive, we enjoy getting involved in the our community. We particularly love providing opportunities to share our passion for the automotive industry with our customers and fellow locals of Stevens Point. For this reason, we hold several different events throughout the year to get better acquainted with the community we serve.
Mechanics for Mutts 2025
(Dave and Anna Harvath, Sherri/HSPC, Claire Johannes and Camille James)
Dec. 2025
Since October of 2017, D and D Automotive Services in Stevens Point has hosted a Mechanics for Mutt’s annual fundraiser. This year the fundraiser was a HUGE success. With the generous support of their customers and fellow animal lovers they raised $9,782.66! To date D and D Automotive has donated over $67,000 to better the lives of shelter animals. The entire Harvath family understands the special feeling of giving to shelter animals. Their love for animals comes from their hearts and their home where they have adopted many.
This donation helps with surgeries, medical procedures, immunizations, chips and other supplies needed to help the animals prepare for their forever homes. This donation is used for all of the shelter animals.
The Humane Society of Portage County is a certified 501c3. Its mission is to prevent cruelty, abuse, neglect and overpopulation of companion animals. HSPC seeks adoption of these animals into compatible homes, and teaches humane awareness and respect for all life, helping to build a better community.
Hunger and Poverty Prevention Partnership Award
We were pleased to receive the Hunger and Poverty Prevention Partnership Award at this years Empty Bowls Fundraiser here in Stevens Point. D&D Auto loves to support our local community and give back when we can!
🐾 Mechanics for Mutts 2025 – Gear Up & Give Back! 🐾
Support local pets in need while showing off your love for cars and compassion! As part of our annual Mechanics for Mutts fundraiser, we’re offering limited-edition D&D Auto Repair hats and travel mugs—with 100% of the proceeds donated to the Humane Society of Portage County.
This year’s exclusive gear includes:
🧢 Mechanics For Mutts: Logo Hats – $20 donation
- Silver Mesh-Back: Cool and breathable
- Gold Seal Cloth: Classic and comfortable
☕ 20 oz Travel Mug – $30 donation
- Keeps drinks hot or cold
- Perfect for the garage or on-the-go
Every purchase helps feed, shelter, and care for animals waiting for their forever home. Whether you’re repping the shop or just want to support a good cause, this is a small way to make a big difference.
🐶 Quantities are limited, so grab yours today and help us drive change—one paw at a time!
👉 Send a check to us at 2916 Minnesota Ave, Stevens Point, WI 54481 and make payable to HSPC or call the shop 715-344-6707 with a credit card number and give us your mailing information
📍 All proceeds benefit the Humane Society of Portage County
Vote D&D Automotive Services for Best Automotive Repair Shop in Portage County and a chance to $250!
Use Link YourChoiceAwards.com/StevensPoint
- Navigate to your desired Section and Category in the ballot below.
- In the category box, find the Nominee you’d like to vote for and click “VOTE.”
- On your first visit, complete the registration and click “SUBMIT.”
- Votes are recorded as they are entered and there is no final “SUBMIT” button.
- On future visits, log in to the ballot using the “Already Entered” function and vote again up to once a day.
Nomination Round March 3-24
Voting Round May 1-15
Winners Announced July 27th
2024 Mechanics for Mutts – Portage County Humane Society
Dave and Anna Harvath, the owners of D&D Automotive Services in Stevens Point, launched the “Mechanics for Mutts” campaign to benefit the Humane Society of Portage County. The annual fundraiser was inspired by Anna’s deep love for animals and aims to give back to the community that has supported their business for nearly three decades.Throughout October and early November, the Harvaths donated proceeds from oil changes, repairs, and a portion of daily sales to the cause. This year, the campaign raised $6,440.34, bringing the total amount donated since its inception in 2009 to over $57,000. Sherri Galle-Teske, executive director of the Humane Society of Portage County, expressed gratitude for the Harvaths’ ongoing dedication, highlighting Dave’s commitment to the cause. “We believe in the cause, and we love helping the animals,” Dave said. The funds raised will go toward providing care for homeless animals in Portage County.
Ongoing Support for the Portage County Humane Society
When Dave Harvath, owner and founder of D&D Auto heard that the Portage County Human Society received several new dogs into the shelter, Dave and the D&D team quickly jumped into action! He said he would be bringing some food by to make sure all of the dogs had plenty to eat. When he backed his truck up to the shelter doors, the bed was full with not 10, not 20, not 30 — but 42 bags of dog food! Each bag weighed 50 pounds! The D&D team single-handedly donated 2100 pounds of dog food!
Mechanics for Mutts benefits Portage County Humane Society For 2023!
12 local NAPA Auto Care Centers raise over $6,000 for the Portage County Humane Society!
On October 5, 2018, Dave Harvath, owner of D&D Auto presented a check to the Portage County Humane Society for $6,062.64. The funds were proceeds from the 2nd annual “Mechanics for Mutts” fundraiser event held on October 3,, 2018, at 12 local Napa Auto Care Centers comprised of the Auto Exchange, Auto Helpers, 2 locations of Auto Select, Auto Sense, Check’s Muffler, Daddio’s, Gary’s Service Center, K&S Auto, Premier Auto Body, Riverwest Motorwerks and of course Dave’s own shop D&D Automotive. The idea for this event came from Dave and his wife Anna as they were looking for a way to give back to the local community who has supported their business for over 29 years.
Each participating Auto Care Center was given the option of donating the proceeds from oil changes performed on the chosen day for the event or donating a percentage of that day’s sales. Local Napa Auto Parts stores owned by Scott Furgason contributed by providing parts for the oil changes at no cost to the Auto Care Centers who participated in this worthy event. The money raised was then presented in the form of a check to the Portage County Humane Society during their annual Pet Fest fundraising event.
This annual fundraiser was a huge success as it far surpassed the group’s goal of $5,000.00.
Mechanics for Mutts benefits Portage County Humane Society!
D and D Automotive would like to thank all of our customers and the other 9 independent NAPA Auto Care Centers who joined together with us to benefit our local humane society shelter by donating a portion of their sales on October 25th towards this worthy cause. At D&D Automotive, we raised over $300 which contributed to the total amount raised of $2823.33. Dave and other representatives from NAPA Auto Care Centers presented the check to Chris, the director of the Portage County Humane Society, on October 28th at their annual Pet Fest fundraising event held in Stevens Point. The Mechanics for Mutts fundraiser was the idea of Dave’s wife Anna who wanted to “give back to the community.”
Due to the huge success of this event, we are going to make this an annual event and are expanding it to include a possible coloring contest, pet essay contest, “Mechanics and Mutts” look-alike contest, and even a food drive to benefit our local animal shelter. This event will be held again during the entire month of October 2018. We will keep our community page updated with further details on how our customers can support this worthy cause. We’re looking forward to spearheading this fundraiser and holding it for many years to come. Again we extend a HUGE THANK YOU to all who made this such a success this year!
NAPA Knows How to Care – Mechanics for Mutts Raises Money for Local Humane Society
With 85 million pet-owning families in the United States today, it’s obvious this is a nation of animal lovers. And with thousands of pets looking for a forever home, it’s only natural that Dave Harvath and his wife Anna, owners of D&D Automotive Services in Stevens Point, Wisconsin, thought to support the Portage County Humane Society.
“We are always looking for ways to give back to the community and Anna has a soft spot for animals. We knew our local Humane Society’s Pet Fest was coming up in just a few weeks so Anna and I visited the other NAPA AutoCare Centers in our area and invited them to join us in a fundraiser. Altogether, ten AutoCare Centers supported this AutoCare promotion we called Mechanics for Mutts.
Shops Put Facebook to Work for the Cause
“Many of our shops took pictures of their employees posing with their pets and posted them on their Facebook pages. The Humane Society posted our fundraiser on their page as well.”
Check’s Muffler Center, owned by Bill Boyer and Cindy Konkol, was another of the 10 participating AutoCare Centers. Debbie Hirt, a 15-year employee, headed up that shop’s efforts. She worked with Optimize Social Media to create a graphic for the Mechanics for Mutts campaign and then went on to post pictures of the shop’s own mechanics and their mutts—or cats—on Check’s Muffler Center’s page. She said, “Our Facebook posts got nearly 10,000 views and hundreds of likes. It was amazing the amount of interaction we received on social media. People love animals.”
The participating NAPA AutoCare Centers were given the choice to either donate all the proceeds from the oil changes performed on the chosen day for the event, or they could choose to donate a percentage of that day’s sales. Scott Furgason, owner of four NAPA AUTO PARTS stores in Central Wisconsin, contributed by donating the oil filters. In all, the AutoCare Center group raised $2,823.33 and presented the check to Chris Langenfeld, executive director of the Portage County Humane Society at the organization’s October PetFest which was held October 28th.
Dave said the group’s first Mechanics for Mutts fundraiser was a huge success. “It was a way for our shops to give back to the community and differentiate ourselves from the competition,” he said. “People, and millenials in particular, are interested in a business’s outreach efforts. It strikes a chord with them.”
Hirt added, “I believe the Mechanics for Mutts fundraiser has absolutely helped our business. When people liked our post on the Portage County Humane Society page, it brought more even people to our site. And we have been noticing many new faces walking into our shop. Mechanics for Mutts definitely helped to get our name out there to a wider audience.”
Mechanics for Mutts Featured in Stevens Point City Times!
Empty Bowls of Portage County
Empty Bowls is a community program to raise funds for local hunger prevention efforts. This year, employees of D&D Automotive will be designing and painting bowls for sale in the effort to raise funds for our local community. We are a proud sponsor of the 2024 event, which will be held later this year. Stay tuned for more details once the date is announced.
In-A-Fix Car Repair Program
In-A-Fix is a car repair program that is a collaborative effort of local NAPA auto businesses, NAPA Auto Parts, Emergency Services, and the United Way of Portage County to provide and administer monetary assistance for car repair and/or tire repair/replacement for income eligible individuals who are employed. D&D Automotive is proud to partner with the United Way of Portage County to provide discounted auto services to referred families and individuals.
Give us a call at (715) 600-5929 if you have any questions or would like to get more information on participating in our local Stevens Point community events!
Check out our Photo Gallery below for photos from our recent community events. Visit our Facebook page for more photos!
