GRAND RAPIDS, Mich., Sept. 30 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Spartan Motors,
Inc. (Nasdaq: SPAR) announced it has teamed up with global publisher Zondervan
to sponsor a coast-to-coast, 44-state RV tour of America aimed at directly
reaching 31,000 people and millions more through co-marketing, national
publicity and events.
Spartan Motors, a leading specialty vehicle and chassis maker including
chassis for Class A RVs, said it is partnering with Zondervan, the world’s
leading Bible publisher, on a five-month, 90-city cross-country tour – Bible
Across America – to handwrite and publish a new Bible one person, one verse at
a time. At the conclusion of the tour, the Bible – America’s NIV – will be
published with all 31,173 contributors listed in the appendix and then sold in
stores nationwide.
Spartan Motors is donating the use of one of its RV test units, a 42-foot,
500 h.p. luxury Fleetwood American Eagle motorhome with a Spartan K2 chassis,
for the 15,000-mile tour, as well as providing road-side assistance through
its national network or dealer and service partners.
“The Bible Across America Tour is a unique opportunity for Spartan to
build our brand and reach a broad cross-section of consumers,” said John
Sztykiel, president and CEO of Spartan Motors. “Our chassis have been the
premier choice for RV enthusiasts who have come to trust Spartan for our
performance, quality and service, and we felt this tour was an ideal way to
showcase the Spartan experience and provide the Zondervan RV team with a
premium ride as they drive cross-country in one of most unique RV tours
imaginable.”
Bible Across America is being launched to commemorate the 30th anniversary
of the New International Version (NIV) translation, the best-selling and most
trusted translation of the Bible. The tour will make scheduled stops at
events, universities, retail stores, churches, American landmarks and other
venues to allow people of all ages and walks of life to write a verse in the
Bible, which will then be published and sold nationwide. The tour kicks off
Sept. 30 in Grand Rapids, Mich. and includes stops ranging from a NASCAR race
in Charlotte, N.C. to the National Pastor’s Convention in San Diego, as well
as signing events in the heart of New York City and for legislators at the
Capitol in Washington D.C. (Tour stops and real-time blog updates:
www.BibleAcrossAmerica.com)
About Spartan Motors
Spartan Motors, Inc. (theshyftgroup.com) designs, engineers and
manufactures custom chassis and vehicles for the recreational vehicle, fire
truck, ambulance, emergency-rescue and specialty vehicle markets. The
Company’s brand names – Spartan(TM), Crimson Fire (TM), Crimson Fire Aerials
(TM), and Road Rescue (TM) – are known for quality, value, service and being
the first to market with innovative products. The Company employs
approximately 1,500 at facilities in Michigan, Pennsylvania, South Carolina
and South Dakota. Spartan reported sales of $681.9 million in 2007 and is one
of the premier manufacturer of specialty vehicles and chassis in North
America.
About the NIV Translation
The NIV is one of the most distinctive Bible translations. In 1978,
following 10 years of intensive translation work, a multi-denominational group
of more than 100 scholars from five English-speaking countries, and financed
by the New York Bible Society (now IBS-STL Global) created the NIV, an all-new
contemporary English translation of the Bible. The first printing of 1.2
million copies was released to consumers as one of the largest book printings
in the history of publishing.
About Zondervan
Zondervan is the world’s leading Bible publisher. With a vision to see
more people engaging the Bible more, Zondervan produces bestselling study,
devotional, reference, text, audio, software, and digital Bibles designed to
inspire readers at every age and stage of life. Zondervan holds exclusive
North American publishing rights to the New International Version (NIV), which
is celebrating its 30th anniversary in 2008. The NIV, the most popular modern
English Bible translation, has more than 300 million copies in print
worldwide. Over the past 75 years, Zondervan, a HarperCollins company, has
grown to be a global leader in Christian communications through its
bestselling Bibles, books, curriculum, children’s, and new media products.
Visit Zondervan Bibles on the Internet at www.zondervan.com/Bibles
SOURCE Spartan Motors, Inc.