Rod Aycox owns the large company of
Select Management Resources that is the father company to over 200 stores in
over 15 states across the country, operating under the names of LoanMax,
LoanStar, and other title loan companies. He started his company is a small
store in Jonesboro, Georgia. He went from insurance salesman to used car
salesman, then he got a flier advertising a software to manage a new business
called title pawn. He didn’t buy the software, but it did give him the idea to
start his own company, so he put up a banner and waited for the customers to
come to him. He made four loans on his first day open. His loan companies are
different from the payday loans that are available and the traditional loan
options at a bank. His loan option is a little less invasive than other lending
options, there is no credit check and all you provide is a copy of your ID, the
title to your car, as collateral, and show your ability to pay back the loan.
Aycox knows what it’s like to start
from nothing and he looks for ways to give back to the community in any way
that he can. Over the years he has donated and sponsored countless charities
and foundations.
In 2006, Rod Aycox announced at the
National Action Network’s Social Justice Revival held in Augusta, Georgia that
his company would sponsor a $10,000 scholarship fund for students that were
dedicated to the study of Social Justice. Then, in 2008, he announced the
company’s sponsorship of the Fourth Ward Health and Educational Center for
Youth, Inc., an organization that organizes transportation to the nearest Boys
and Girls Club, hosts youth sporting events, and provides a library and
computer labs for the youth in the area.
Rod
Aycox also supports the Martin Luther King Jr National Memorial Project, he
donated $100,000, in December of 2010, to help establish a memorial
commemorating the life and work of Martin Luther King Jr. He also announced his
continued sponsorship to the Fourth Ward Health and Educational Center for
Youth, Inc. in Houston, Texas.
In 2011
Rod Aycox donated $25,000 to help the relief effort in Joplin, Missouri and
Southeast Kansas after the tornado that occurred in May of 2011. Rod Aycox was
also the primary sponsor for the 42nd NAACP Image Awards in 2011.
The NAACP Image Awards is the nation’s pre-eminent multi-cultural awards show
the celebrates the achievements of people from different cultures in the arts,
such as, television, literature, movies, and writing and directing, as well as
groups who promote social justice.
Then,
in 2014, Rod Aycox’s LoanMax contributed $5,000 to Big Brothers and Big Sisters
of Mahoning Valley when they hosted their annual Christmas Party. Every child
that attends the annual Christmas party were treated to Christmas gifts, a
catered meal, and a visit from Santa. They also helped provide winter coats and
hats to the children. The Big Brothers and Big Sisters organization gives back
to the community especially around Christmas for the families whose parents
can’t afford winter jackets or Christmas presents. In 2014, they helped more
than 150 children.
Rod
Aycox has also donated to organizations that promote tolerance and fight
discrimination. In June of this year, there was a terrible tragedy in
Charleston, South Carolina at the Episcopal Church that resulted in the
shooting and deaths of nine people. Rod Aycox partnered with Lamell McMorris to
provide $1 million in gifts to support a number of local and national groups,
including Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church, the Martin Luther King
Jr. International Chapel at Morehouse College, the NAACP, the National Action
Network, and the Rainbow PUSH Coalition. These organizations support programs
that help improve the underlying conditions that lead to violence, they foster
empowerment, literacy, communication, and equal opportunities for all.
Rod
Aycox has given back to so many communities across the country. If he sees
something he is passionate about and sees a way that he can help, he does. It
is that simple for him. He is determined to make the country a better place and
to help as many people as he can. I know that a lot of people appreciate him
and his efforts. We all can look up to a man like that.
