HUNTSVILLE — Mazda Toyota Manufacturing awarded $180,000 to 10 local nonprofits as part of its inaugural Mazda Toyota Manufacturing Grant Fund.
Thursday’s Community Appreciation Event featured Gov. Kay Ivey, Mazda CEO Akira Marumoto, and Toyota CEO Akio Toyoda, as well as elected and community leaders, and Team ONE partner companies.
“MTM could not be where it is today without the commitment and support we received from our community, our government stakeholders, and our Team ONE partners,” said Masashi Aihara, president of MTM.
This was the first time Ivey, Marumoto, Toyoda and Aihara were together since the November 2018 groundbreaking.
“Mazda Toyota Manufacturing does more than just operate a world-class manufacturing facility in Alabama — these automakers have shown from day one that they were fully committed to community involvement,” said Ivey. “As today’s giving illustrates, they are making a real difference by supporting causes that are important in and around their Alabama hometown.”
MTM’s grant fund opened for applicants in March with The Community Foundation of Greater Huntsville as its partner. The fund offers support to local and regional organizations that serve their community through education, economic impact and quality of life programming.
This year’s recipients include Huntsville Hospital Foundation, Agape of North Alabama, the United Way of Madison County, Drake State Technical College, Limestone County Career Technical Center, Madison County Career Tech Center, Madison City Schools, Athens State University Foundation, the Cap and Gown Project, and KTECH.
“MTM has been a strong community partner since its inception,” said Huntsville Mayor Tommy Battle. “We have been excited and honored to celebrate each milestone with our friends and partners, and we look forward to many more years of collaboration, contribution and prosperity.”
MTM debuted the Toyota Corolla Cross last September followed by the start of production for the all-new Mazda CX-50 in January.
The company employs more than 3,200 people, and is hiring an additional 800 through the year. The $2.311 billion facility will have the capacity to assemble up to 300,000 SUVs once it reaches full production. The Corolla Cross and CX-50 are being produced and sold at dealerships across the country.
