Giving Back to the Community Photos Linda Carfagno
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abriel Garcia’s automotive career started with a part-time job at what used to be Checker Auto Parts, which prompted Gabriel to enroll in the automotive technology class at Vo-Tech. His instructor, Skip Saurman, motivated Gabriel’s interest in automotive repair as a career path. Saurman offered his students a chance to represent Vo-Tech in contests that challenged their skill and knowledge. Gabriel embraced these opportunities, and worked diligently to become the best student Skip would have. Together, student and pupil would become the best high school automotive program New Mexico and the nation had in 1990. To date, Gabriel is the only national first place winner from N.M. in the high school division of the U.S. Skills Olympics. Gabriel was awarded thousands of dollars in scholarships, tools, three gold medals, and an opportunity to compete on the lawn of the National Mall in Washington D.C. Fast forward to 1998, The Auto Angel Inc. was originally started by Gabriel and Caroline Garcia (his high school sweet heart) and was at the time known as ‘Gabriel The Auto Angel’. It was a mobile auto repair facility, meaning Gabriel would perform repairs at a customer’s location, or pick up and drop off customer’s vehicles. After about six months, Gabriel and Caroline rented a small facility and decided to take their business to the next level. They opened a full-time auto repair facility, and Gabriel quit his night job. They changed the name to ‘The Auto Angel’ and incorporated in January of 1999. The Auto Angel soon became a well-known and respected business in Santa Fe. By the time the business was about one and a half years old, it had outgrown its space, so the business moved to a larger location. To better serve its growing clientele, the business moved once more in 2007 to its current location at 3140 Cerrillos Road.
In 2016, Gabriel was selected to represent 8,000 members of the elite Tech-Net affiliation as a member of the national council. Gabriel is an ASE master tech, with L1 (advanced) certification. Gabriel received his certificate of accreditation in automotive management from the Automotive Management Institute. When it comes to giving back to the community, The Auto Angel is extremely proud of its food drive program. The team offers every client a 65-point courtesy inspection in exchange for one grocery bag of non-perishable food. This donation is collected for The Food Depot. In 2016, the team generated over 8,000 lbs. of food, one inspection at a time. The team has also completed three consecutive annual family service days. Recipients have included The Salvation Army, N.M National Guard, Paws & Stripes in Rio Rancho, Big Brothers Big sisters and Wings for Hope. The Auto Angel mentors through partnerships with Monte Del Sol, Inspire and The Girl Scouts. Additionally, Gabriel voluntarily teaches an elective automotive class to 6th, 7th and 8th grade girls. All of this is made possible by recruiting and cultivating a great team of the best professionals in the industry. Auto Angel is an independent shop offering a nationwide warranty that provides better than, or equal to, service as a major dealership. And, an entire professional team that can take care of you even in Gabriel’s absence. The Auto Angel 3140 Cerrillos Road 505.424.3899 TheAutoAngel.com