It is Better to Give When Someone in Need Receives
Twin Cities Live is proud to team up with White Bear Mitsubishi to feature The Wheels for Women program at Newgate School in Minneapolis.
Since the 1980s, the nonprofit has donated over 700 cars to moms who don't have reliable transportation. Typically, Newgate highlights one recipient each month on Twin Cities Live, but for the 12 Moms of Christmas event, they wanted to go all out to capture tremendous amounts of joy.
According to Blythe Severson of the Newgate School, "The Newgate School started over 20 years ago. There were single moms with small children who didn't have reliable transportation, and that created, as you can imagine, a lot of issues for them to get their kids to school, to get to work, keeping a full-time job, etc..
We started taking some of the cars that were donated to be used in our training program to help teach our students, and then use those cars as a way to give back to the community.
So, we took those vehicles and gave them to women who needed them. This is the first year that we've actually done an event like this: 12 vehicles all at one time. The idea that we had for doing this was pretty amazing, and it actually almost doubled the number of vehicles that we were able to give away to women this year. It's an amazing thing for us, for all of us at Newgate.
Richard Herod III of White Bear Mitsubishi stands with a room full of excited women: "Today is a really awesome day, and I really appreciate all of you to be willing to take time out of your morning to be here at a specific time so we could coordinate this. It's the first year we've done the 12 Moms of Christmas; hopefully, we can keep doing it every year. Thank you for being Santa's little helper."
"So I raised two kids," says Severson," and I just imagined myself what it would have been like to try and get them to school and back home while trying and get myself to work every day without having reliable transportation. I just cannot imagine doing that. So when I look at women like this, who are keeping full-time jobs and raising families by themselves, there is nothing like the feeling of helping them maintain a better life for their families.
While 12 moms walk out into the parking lot, some carrying their small children, they meet with representatives from various auto dealers who participated in the event. Herod meets their excitement: "I'm so happy to be here with a group of car dealers that have come to make a difference in your Christmas holiday this year: Friendly Chevrolet, Gilleland Chevrolet, The Apple Auto Group (Apple Ford Shakopee, Apple Chevrolet Buick Northfield, Apple Ford Lincoln Apple Valley, Apple Valley CJDR), Volkswagon of Inver Grove, Rydell Auto and Outlet Garage, and White Bear Mitsubishi.
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We're just so pleased this holiday season to make your Christmas holiday a little better. This is our first year of doing the 12 Moms of Christmas, but hopefully, it won't be our last.
The moms are introduced to their new cars. "This is a blessing. I'm so happy," says one mom while another can be heard expressing gratitude: "This is so amazing. I swear, my old car…the heat didn't work. I'm sitting here crying."
One mom interviewed explained how having a reliable car means the world to her family: "I'm speechless. My little guy was born with Spinal Bifida and has to see several specialists on a regular basis. That's been kind of the biggest challenge. He's a little trooper."
Some of the moms discuss how they had to walk everywhere before today: "It feels awesome. I moved here four years ago without a car, and now I have a car. It's so amazing. It's a miracle," says the mother of ten-year-old twin boys, "we walk everywhere" while another exclaims, "I walk to work. I walk my girls to school. So this is a huge blessing."
"My heart is so full. This is the best day ever," said Christy Gilleland of Gilleland Chevrolet Cadillac," We feel so blessed that we're able to do this and meet these awesome ladies."
At the Newgate School, we try to give away two cars a month throughout the year. This time of year (Christmas), it means something more.
When You Help a Mom, You Help a Family
The Newgate School is able to lead the Wheels for Women program from generous donations from the community. By simply donating an old, unused vehicle, you can not only make room in your garage but can help change a single mother's life forever.
Learn more about how your used car can make a difference by contacting the Newgate School in Minneapolis today.