Happy Birthday! It’s 30 candles for the Barbera Bear!
The Barbera Cares Bear celebrates his 30th Birthday
Since 1989 The BarberaCares Bear has lent his furry paws to thousands of charitable community events and has helped to spread the Gary Barbera Safety while Driving Messages of Don’t Drink & Drive in the 90’s and presently the Don’t Text & Drive Slow Down, Phone Down PSA across Philadelphia and the surrounding suburbs as well as the Tri-State area.
The Barbera Bear’s roots started in Beautiful Roxborough when Gary Barbera opened Gary Barbera Dodge and the Barbera Bear has grown up in the Great Northeast where the Barbera family was born and raised.
Thirty years later, The BarberaCares Bear is celebrating a milestone birthday. How did he choose to celebrate? By leaving his paw prints all over Philadelphia by Sharing and Caring in our Communities.
The Barbera Bear’s Big Birthday festivities included
The Barbera Summertime Splash Bathing Suit Bash at Max Myers Playground by teaming up Gary Barbera and State Rep. Jared Solomon for a bathing suit giveaway for the children so they could use the pool safely. The Barbera Bear had a lot of fun and bears do like to swim. Watch Video
Sharing PSA’s of Don’t Text and Drive, Slow Down Phone Down like the one on the WPVI- TV 6ABC Digital Message Board at the Corner of City Line Avenue. And of course visiting all of the Barbera PSA Bus Shelter Bench Revitalizations in the city and the surrounding suburbs of Montco, Delco, Chester, and the Bus Shelters in South Jersey and Bucks County.
Visiting all of the Big Belly Solar Recycling Kiosks that honor Gary Barbera’s hometown heroes The Roxborough and the Northeast Family YMCAs and the AACR. These kiosks utilize solar power to compact litter all while lowering the cost of recycling for the city.
The Barbera Bear took a spin in the All-New Gary Barbera 2020 Jeep Gladiator to Pace the Annual iHeart Sista Strut at Xfinity Live! In typical Barbera Bear style he ran along with the ladies to encourage the cancer survivors and all those who strutted to raise funds for the AACR – American Association for Cancer Research.
The Barbera Bear was on Fox29’s National Mascot Day competition with fellow mascots – The Temple Owl, Busstop Buddy, Philly Pretzel and Phang from the Union. The Barbera Bear has been training for the Mascot 4 a Cure Run that will take place at Citizens Bank Park. Proceeds go to help families with children battling cancer.
The Barbera Bear has been spotted in Wildwood, Atlantic City, and Ocean City! He’s enjoying the sun and fun on the boardwalk checking on the Gary Barbera Don’t Text and Walk Sun Shelters, the Gary Barbera Dodge Days Displays on the AC boardwalk where you can win big in front of the Tropicana, Resorts and near Steel Pier, and surprising beachgoers in OC and dancing away, posing for pictures, and hanging out at the Cars and Coffee Car Show.
The Barbera Bear has doubled down on the BarberaCares Don’t Text and Drive, Slow Down Phone Down Adopt-A-Highway commitment to help keep the roadways litter free. Gary Barbera and the Barbera Bear care about the environment and roadways. They are happy to be the 2002 inaugural partner of Governor Edward G. Rendell’s Adopt-A-Highway state wide clean up initiative from the ground up.
And the Barbera Bear has participated in many meet and greets, neighborhood clean-ups, strolled in holiday and neighborhood parades, been to local festivals and block parties! The Barbera Bear just keeps celebrating his 30th Birthday and has more events planned to keep the party going!
The Barbera Backs the Back Packs with Gary Barbera joining forces again with State Representative Jared Solomon just in time for Back to School the Barbera Bear will be there helping to distribute the bookbags donated by the Gary Barbera BarberaCares Program just like he has been lending his paws for years with the Barbera Coat Giveaways, the holiday turkey and toy giveaways.
The Barbera Bear’s not Backing Down from his 30th Birthday Celebration… Look for his paw prints all over the city.
