Humanitarian of the Year: Giving back the Katz meow

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — The two-week sprint that culminated in another successful community event had just ended. Ron Katz was exhausted, yet still riding a philanthropic high from his continuing quest to make a difference in his little slice of Florida.

Two of his three Midas-affiliated shops — his flagship location in West Palm Beach and the other in Cocoa Beach, a little more than a rocket's length from the Kennedy Space Center — had just hosted a vaccine clinic. Floridians could stop by the shop, receive a COVID-19 vaccination along with a coupon for a free or reduced-cost oil change.

The event was both skin-breaking and ground-breaking: Florida health officials told Mr. Katz that no other business in the third most populated state in the U.S. had hosted such an event.

As he was packing up a tent, his cellphone rang.

Mr. Katz received more good news: He was the 2021 recipient of the Tire Business Tire Dealer Humanitarian Award.

An independent panel selected Mr. Katz from an impressive list of more than 20 other tire dealers as this year's winner of the prestigious Tire Business award, which recognizes an independent tire dealer or retreader in North America who during the past year has made significant contributions to the betterment of his or her community through charitable and/or public service work.

Mr. Katz's initial reaction: "Holy ****!"

The news of the honor sunk in over the next two hours as Mr. Katz drove his truck to his home near West Palm from the store in Cocoa Beach. It was only a few months earlier when Mr. Katz was named the inaugural winner of Midas' Mark Smith Award. The award was named after the 2018 Tire Business Tire Dealer Humanitarian Award winner, who operates five shops near Richmond, Va.

Just three years after Mr. Smith received the award, Mr. Katz learned he was following in the footsteps of his humanitarian mentor, the inspiration behind his charitable endeavors.

"I can't believe this was awarded to me," Mr. Katz said. "It's an elite group of people who have gotten it. To be acknowledged for the work I've given back, ..." his voice trailing off.

The committee said Mr. Katz's humanitarian activities "are far reaching beyond his local community, although he has an amazing track record in giving back locally."

The 59-year-old Mr. Katz is the 28th winner of the award and second from Florida. He was scheduled to receive the prestigious Humanitarian Medal, engraved with his name and dealership, on Nov. 1 during the Tire Industry Association (TIA) Honors Awards luncheon at the Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. Tire Business also will donate $2,500 to the charity of his choice: St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis.

The judges selected Mr. Katz long before he had organized the vaccine clinic. It is just one example of how his Midas shop — or more specifically how Mr. Katz — helps to make the community better.

"When you give, you don't expect to get anything back. You're doing it because you're doing it out of the goodness of your heart. That's exactly how it is," he said. "When I got the phone call, I was like, 'Oh my God, I can't believe I actually won it.'

"To be acknowledged is a shock. It still is. I'm still on Cloud Nine."

Mr. Smith and his wife Patti spent a day visiting with Mr. Katz and his wife Claudia late last year. Unbeknownst to Mr. Katz, Mr. Smith was doing some reconnaissance work, trying to learn as much about Mr. Katz as he could before presenting him with the Mark Smith Award at the next day's Midas Conference.

That evening, the conference was canceled because of COVID-19, delaying the award presentation for several months.

Mr. Smith left the Sunshine State impressed.

"He really runs a very impressive operation," Mr. Smith said. "It's very people-oriented. He's very loyal to people. He's really created a good grassroots network in the areas he's in. Everywhere we went, people knew him, and he doesn't do aggressive local marketing. That was noticeable."

There are times when Mr. Katz's work with his community is very noticeable. The vaccine clinic, of course, is one such example.

Others include:

• Quarterly blood drives: an idea he derived specifically from Mr. Smith;
• Directing hurricane relief efforts for those in need, particularly for Puerto Ricans devastated by Hurricane Maria;
• Hosting community fundraisers;
• Providing free repairs for government employees affected by the government shutdown in 2018-19;
• Awarding Teacher of the Month certificates at a local school; and
• Renovating and restoring an eight-passenger SUV, then donating it to the Sickle Cell Foundation of Palm Beach County and Treasure Coast Inc.

And there are other times when Mr. Katz's acts of charity remain anonymous, at least outside of his employees.

Like the time a homeless man showed up at his shop, his vehicle needing repair. Mr. Katz not only repaired the vehicle but offered him a place to park and gave him a temporary job as a porter, even though the shop didn't have a need for one.

Mr. Katz delivered dinner to the man on both Thanksgiving and Christmas that year.

One time, Mr. Katz paid to repair a water pump for a woman who was out of work and struggling to pay bills.

"I've been around a lot of (tire and automotive service) people in all my years, but there's no comparison (with Mr. Katz)," John Kellem, who has been manager of Midas of West Palm for five years, said.

"We take care of customers well. I see that quite often. As far as taking care of the community, I've never seen anyone like Ron Katz go to the extreme that he does."

Here's one extreme: Mr. Katz organized a fundraiser for a local woman he barely knew.

The lady, Kelly Orr, is part of a nightclub act that headlines her husband, George Orr, a Rod Stewart look-alike. The Orrs traverse the state — and other areas of North America — putting on a Rod Stewart tribute show.

Though the Orrs only knew Mr. Katz as one of the thousands of fans who attend their shows, Mr. Katz approached them about holding a fundraiser not long after Mrs. Orr was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. A few weeks later, more than $10,000 was raised to help defray her medical bills.

"I couldn't speak more highly of the man," Mr. Orr said.

"His heart is really into it," he added. "I believe he has improved the business 100% by doing what he does. I know he doesn't do it for that reason. So many people, when I talk to them, I tell where to go get their oil changed and get tires. Why? Because this man gave to us, and we want to give to him."

Mr. Katz's giving also continues to benefit the Sickle Cell Foundation. The refurbished SUV he donated remains a vital mode of transportation for the agency and its clients.

"I don't think you could have selected a better person who is so very humble, and who is generous and has not looked for a return in his investment," Shalonda Warren, foundation CEO, said. "His return has been knowing that the community is being served, and that is unique."

These acts of kindness, both big and small, fuel Mr. Katz.

"I love it. I've never done drugs in my life, but it's a high to me," he said.

Mr. Katz is a relative newcomer to the tire and automotive service industry. He grew up in Queens and Long Island, N.Y., but he said he always longed to settle in Florida. Once his family reached the same conclusion, he and his thick New York accent moved to Florida 17 years ago, when he was 42.

He has had several high-level jobs both in New York and Florida during a storied professional career — which began when he quit school in the eighth grade to work full-time installing alarm systems. Mr. Katz didn't become a tire dealer until July 1, 2015.

That is the day when he and his partner, investor and his mother's significant other, Jerry Kaye, took ownership of Midas of West Palm Beach and a shop in Lake Worth, Fla. Mr. Kaye was the ninth owner of the Palm Beach store in 20 years.

Today, the pair own three shops: Midas of West Palm Beach (4,500 square feet, seven bays), Midas of Cocoa Beach (6,500 square feet, eight bays); and Midas of Cutler Bay (4,000 square feet, five bays), located about 20 miles southwest of Miami.

It wasn't long after he joined the Midas family that Mr. Katz met Mr. Smith at a franchise event. There, Mr. Katz hatched the idea of hosting blood drives at his shop, mimicking Mr. Smith, who has been holding blood drives at his Virginia locations since the day after Sept. 11, 2001.

Mr. Katz, like his mentor, gives donors coupons for free oil changes (with no expiration date), along with a T-shirt. The blood drives, staggered at each of his locations, feature a barbecue and music. He hasn't held one in more than six months because of the pandemic, but once things return to normal, he vows to resume.

"Before I started this, I did not know blood drives — I never donated blood," he said.

Each one averages about 20 donors.

His wife was the inspiration for his next endeavor: Rewarding teachers at the Howell L. Watkins Middle School in West Palm, where his wife was working as a substitute teacher.

"I know teachers don't make a lot of money," Mr. Katz said. "I wanted to do something for the school, do something for teachers."

The school and Mr. Katz launched a program in which the school selects a teacher of the month who has gone above and beyond, and Mr. Katz rewards him or her with a Midas gift certificate. The amount ranges from $25 to $100, depending on various factors.

Mr. Katz become more involved in the school, even serving on a board, but the pandemic has put the program on hold.

"Teachers appreciate it," he said. "To this day, they know they can call me for anything, and I'll be there."

His philanthropic spirit kicked into overdrive in the aftermath of two hurricanes, particularly Hurricane Maria, which devastated Puerto Rico in 2017.

Mr. Katz had spent part of his previous professional career working as a consultant at a car dealership there.

"I love the island," he said. "I was really hurt to see what the island looked like."

He contacted an agency, and they told him that if he could supply goods to them, they would get it there.

Mr. Katz used social media to inform the community about his efforts, and he used his shops as drop-off points for donations. He also worked with a local restaurant to raise funds, while some area home-owner associations also collected money and goods.

He had two prerequisites before he started his efforts: He was going to send goods, rather than money, to the island; and he wanted to ensure the goods he supplied would be distributed to all areas of the island, rather than just one part.

"One of my biggest fears was not getting it to the people who needed help most," he said.

In a few weeks, he had raised close to $20,000. That translated into quite a shopping spree at Costco: He purchased 20 pallets of essentials such as water, toilet paper, canned goods, paper towels, diapers, rice, medical supplies — even dog food. He spent his own money to rent a U-Haul in order to transport the goods from Costco and deliver them to a nearby warehouse.

"If we raised $15,000, I was going to spend $15,000," he said. "100% of the money went to help the people."

His successful venture into hurricane-relief efforts prompted him to follow the same script two years later, when Hurricane Dorian ripped through the Bahamas.

This time, he said he raised more than $10,000 and sent two generators, worth $1,600 apiece, to the island, as well as clothes, toiletries and other essentials. Rather than partner with an agency, he found several local pilots who delivered the goods to the island.

He even hired a Bahamian who had been displaced to work at his shop.

"I promise you," he said, "I'm going to continue to get involved to help people affected by these natural disasters."

His two signature humanitarian events — outside of the vaccine clinics — involve people in need in his immediate community.

The first was the Project Spark initiative, an idea that emerged from a Midas convention.

"I said right then, 'I want in,'" he said.

It was a simple concept: rehabilitate a vehicle and donate it to a charity in need.

The first part was easy. He'd contact an agency, Cars for Charity, which found him an eight-passenger SUV — a 2010 Buick Enclave that "was in really bad shape."

In fact, Mr. Katz said the body was dented, it was missing seats and "scratched up like you wouldn't believe."

But he told Mr. Kellem, the service manager, "I think we can make this happen."

The shop had to replace shocks, motor mounts, harness, "You name it, it had to be done," Mr. Katz said.

He engaged many of his vendors, asking them to donate parts and services — either free or at a substantially reduced cost.

At one point, he and Mr. Kellem ventured to a salvage yard in the middle of a hot Miami afternoon to secure a mirror mount from a scrap vehicle.

"There were 500 rows of vehicles, and we had to find the right row with the right vehicle," Mr. Katz said. "And we had to take our own tools to take the part off."

Once finished, he took the van to a body shop to be painted. After countless hours and an out-of-pocket cost of around $2,500, the van was ready for delivery.

But to whom?

During the rehabilitation process, he had reached out to the Operation Kingdome International Church and its pastor, Linda Collymore, whose ministry serves the inner city. After researching several agencies, she recommended that Midas donate the SUV to the Sickle Cell Foundation.

In February 2020, in front of TV cameras and dignitaries, Ms. Warren took delivery of the vehicle.

More than a year and a half later, she said the vehicle was used to deliver food boxes to people throughout the agency's footprint. Not only did the agency deliver food, they also provided personal protective equipment such as hand sanitizers, gloves and disinfectant wipes, at a time when demand was high and supply low.

"That gift, that giving, has reached people in ways that Ron hasn't imagined, but his heart and intentions were good," Ms. Warren said. "We have had a chance to circle back and say, 'thank you ... for just being a great person and serving the best way you know how.'"

Less than seven months later, Mr. Katz was at it again, organizing a fundraiser for Kelly Orr, who not only was fighting a deadly disease, but was buried in medical bills, as well.

The event featured a car show, food trucks, prizes, giveaways, a blood drive — and a special performance by Mr. Orr doing what he does best: channeling Rod Stewart.

In addition to the money raised at the event, Mr. Katz donated 10% of sales at the Midas shop that day.

"He is so genuine, a from-the-heart kind of guy," Ms. Orr said.

"He is one of these people who can never be duplicated. You look back on life and say, 'My life has been enriched by this guy.' He's just an amazing person."

Ms. Orr's cancer is in remission. In fact she is healthy enough to resume participating in their act, "A Tribute to Rod Stewart — George Orr & The Hot Rod Band."

Mr. Katz continues to dream up ways to give back. With Florida reeling from the pandemic, the idea to hold a vaccine clinic at two of his shops came to him in the middle of the night.

The idea wasn't politically motivated — Mr. Katz said he believes it's a person's choice whether or not to get vaccinated. With a compromised immune system, however, he is more susceptible to COVID-19 and believes it is the right choice for him and his family. He not only has been vaccinated, but also has had his booster.

Mr. Katz remains amazed that it took him just one phone call — he was transferred to four different people — to move the needle, so to speak, and arrange a meeting with an official from the Florida Department of Health.

The official asked Mr. Katz which vaccine he preferred they administer. His response: Why not all three?

"She said nobody has asked us that before," he said.

It took a day to put the clinics together, and after two frenetic weeks of organizing the events and spreading the word via social media, Mr. Katz was barbecuing in his Midas parking lot as residents were vaccinated in a nearby tent. While he had hoped to get 100 people vaccinated, the final tally was 18.

He apologized to health department officials for what he thought was a low turnout. They thought exactly the opposite.

"They told me that we had exceeded their expectations," Mr. Katz said. "They were thrilled by the number. They thought we'd get one, two, maybe three. They said that was 18 more people that are vaccinated today that weren't (earlier that morning)."

The community, he said, thanked him repeatedly for the clinic. "I can't tell you how many texts I got," he said.

A few days after the clinic, Charlie Crist, a one-time governor of Florida who represents Florida's 13th district in the U.S. House of Representatives, visited the dealership to thank Mr. Katz personally. Mr. Crist, a Democrat, is running for governor of the state in 2022, likely against incumbent Ron DeSantis, a Republican who opposes mask and vaccine mandates.

While Mr. Katz wants to remain apolitical, he was impressed with Mr. Crist. The politician gave Mr. Katz his card with his personal cell number on it.

"He told me several times, if I ever needed anything, to call him," Mr. Katz said.

Mr. Katz credits his staff for helping him continue his charitable endeavors.

"We're only as good as our team. I could not do the charity I do without having my team behind and also knowing I don't have to be on their ass every minute," he said. "I can dedicate two weeks to the vaccine event, and everyone is still doing what they got to do. They pick up the slack for me all the time."

While Mr. Katz, meanwhile, picks up the slack for the less fortunate in his community.

"I hope people are inspired by Ron," Ms. Warren said, "inspired to be recognized for their value, inspired by the importance of his acts of service, his acts of kindness.

"Every community needs a Ron Katz."