Samuel Freeman '97 has donated an electric truck to the College for use by Facilities Management and Arboretum staff members. The truck serves as an environmentally conscious alternative to gas-powered golf carts.
Samuel Freeman '97 has found an unusual way to give back to Haverford. This fall, he donated a battery-operated Dynasty Electric Motors“It” truck to the College. The environmentally friendly vehicle is currently being used by Facilities Management and Arboretum staff members as an alternative to gas-powered golf carts.
Freeman purchased the truck for himself five years ago and used it for the short commute to his eponymous Santa Monica art gallery.“It's a hoot to drive,” he says.“It's fun to tool around in.” The low-speed vehicle (it tops out at 25 miles per hour) is noise-and-emission-free, and can be recharged anytime and anywhere. The truck drew admiring stares and comments from passerby, and even earned Freeman a spot in Santa Monica's Fourth of July Parade, where he welcomed the former mayor as a passenger.
Freeman was then selected for a one-year trial of an electric Mini Cooper. He stored the truck in a garage, but hated hiding it away:“I thought about it being sad and lonely, decaying from disuse.” When his Mini Cooper trial was extended for another year, he decided to donate the vehicle to his alma mater as a way of giving back to the College.
“Haverford's compact campus is perfect for the truck's low speed,” he says.“It's even in the school's color.”
Freeman says it“made my week” to receive a photo of Arboretum horticulturists using the truck to transport potted plants.“It's great to see it have a new life,” he says.
