Bob Lorenz of Sidney, Maine Wins A 2011 Honda Fit

Lee Auto Mall donated the car as the Grand Prize in the “Life is Better with MPBN” contest

(AUBURN, Maine) – Bob Lorenz, an organic gardener from Sidney, Maine, picked up his brand new Honda Fit on Wednesday from Lee Auto Mall in Auburn after being chosen at random as the winner of the Maine Public Broadcasting Network’s third annual “Life is Better with MPBN” contest.

Mr. Lorenz came to Maine in 2006 after 32 years in New York working for two iconic American companies, IBM and Kodak, and started an organic farm where he and his partner grow most of the food they consume throughout the year. He was in his kitchen canning pickles for the winter when reached for comment about what drew him to Maine and about winning the car.

“What brought me here was everything I felt Maine stood for,” Lorenz said, listing traits that included “honesty, self-reliance, straightforwardness, concern for the environment and for the foods we eat and how they’re grown.”

In addition to being a member of MPBN, Lorenz is an active member of the Maine Organic Farmers and Gardeners Association, or MOFGA, and volunteers his carpentry skills each year to help prepare the fairgrounds for the Common Ground Fair in Unity and to help with the clean-up afterward.

Lorenz referenced a common Internet scam as he recalled the phone message he received from MPBN informing him that he had won a new car.

“The caller didn’t provide a Nigerian P.O. box, so we thought it would be in our best interest to call back,” he said with a hearty laugh. Even though he was already an MPBN member, Lorenz made an additional donation to MPBN of $500 when he picked up his new car.

According to the terms of the contest, anyone who made a donation to MPBN in any amount during May or June was entered into a random drawing for the car. As required by law, the contest was also open to anyone regardless of whether a donation was made, and thousands of entries were mailed in to MPBN or filled out at Lee Auto’s twenty locations throughout the state to be included in the drawing, which was conducted in July.

Lee Auto Mall Chairman Adam Lee is also a member of MPBN and offered the car as an incentive for others to also support the network.  Four other individuals won runner-up prizes consisting of an Apple iPad II as part of this year’s “Life is Better with MPBN” contest.

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