July 25, 2013—Audra Fordin, owner of Great Bear Auto Repair and Auto Body Shop in Flushing, N.Y., and founder of Women Auto Know, has teamed up with the Long Island Children’s Museum to educate children on the auto repair experience.
The duo put together a traveling exhibit titled “Broken; Fix it” that will travel to children’s museums throughout the U.S. and focuses on automotive education.
"The disconnect in the automotive industry starts at a young age. By educating our children early in their lives that they can do anything, regardless of gender, they will be more apt to take care of themselves as second nature, without the stigma of outside stereotypes holding them back," Fordin said.
Fordin is featured in the exhibit’s “Mechanic’s Corner,” a garage-like setting that will feature three partial, life-size cars for children to tinker The three cars, one on ground level, one on a lift and one jack accessible, will give children the experience of learning differences between working car parts and defunct ones.
The exhibit will feature a variety of tasks including using a tire jack to raise, release_notes and replace a soft sculpture tire with tightening and loosening bolts as well as replacing a dirty air filter by choosing a good one out of a variety.
The goal of the exhibit is to teach children to assess, determine a problem and tackle it with proper tools.
"This is a win-win-win for the future drivers of America, the automotive industry as a whole, and for generations of children who will be caring for us later in life,” Fordin said.
