CARS 4 HEROES RECIPIENT

   Cars 4 Heroes kicked off with its first recipient of 09 giving a car away at the ASA (Automotive Services Assoc. ) on March 7th at a breakfast for hundreds of automotive businesses asking for their help. Explaining the need for our service we read the letter below that we received.:

  I was honorably discharged from the military after being injured on my second tour in Iraq. I was sent home in early October, 2008. My family and I were traveling to Missouri from Ohio (which was where I was living at the time) for Thanksgiving with my family. Our vehicle broke down half way there. (Marshall, Illinois) We had to get a tow and stay in a hotel until my parents were able to get there to pick us up. Our vehicle was unfixable. After we arrived in Missouri, we had no way of returning to Ohio. We didn't have enough money for a bus ticket and none of our family members in Missouri have a vehicle that would make the trip to Ohio and take our whole family with them. I have two small children, ages 2 and 8 months. My wife has been looking for employment, but with no vehicle, even if she finds it, she will have to get rides to and from work everyday. We live in a very small town and there aren't any jobs here. There are jobs about a 45 minute drive away from where we live. I am unable to work due to my injuries I sustained in Iraq. A vehicle would help us get back on our feet again. We are currently staying at my aunts house, sleeping on a pull out couch in her living room. This whole situation has put a strain on all of us involved. My aunt is on a fixed income and she can't afford to support my family and hers. We are in desperate need of transportation so my wife can seek employment and we can get into our own place again. I feel like a total waste of human life right now because I can't help my family. I am currently being seen at the VA for my injuries and we have absolutly no income coming in. I can't even afford to buy diapers for my children. This car, if given to us, would mean diapers for my kids, new shoes for my 2 year old who has been wearing them a size to small because I can't buy him new ones, clothes for both my kids because they are growing so fast! A place that me and my family can call "our home" again, and not someone elses that we're just staying at. I am begging you, if you can please help us it will be appreciated more than you will ever know. Help us get our life back. We applied at usacare.com for assistance and they only help with food and bills, so they pointed us in your direction. We would appreciate anything that you can do for us. Respectfully, Frederick

  Fredrick was introduced to the men and women at the convention and with a standing ovation lasting several minutes showing appreciation for his service, he was given the keys to a vehicle

Cars 4 Christmas

Hi, I am writing for my daughter Sheila (she dos'nt no). She has been thru so much this year starting with a family member being diagnosed with cancer, her grandmother hospilized and her brother almost losing his life due to internal bleeding, she stayed strong and helped everyone of us thru our illness complaining not once, even though i no it was hard on her, than her husband of 7 year left her and their 3 small children ages 8,7,5. even though she was hurting she stayed strong because of the children.but now she lost her job about a month ago and was on her way to a interview on 12-9-08 and ended up hitting some black ice losing control of her vechile and rolling it twice , she spent 2 days in the hospital,we were blessed that she was not seriously injured.(thanks to her seat belt ) but her vechile was totaled. I no this sounds like one of those songs but honestly it's been her life this year. She's worried about how she's going to get a job and give her kids christmas. Sheila is a very strong willed person who wants to work. .Her getting a vechile would give her a way to continue to look for employment , take care of her kids and get back on her feet. We have a close family and I would love to help her myself but due to my medical bills were unable right now. Our intire family would be grateful for this gift for her. Thank you for your consideration ______________________________________________________________________

This family had been homeless and staying in a Salvation Shelter. Kelly finally found a job and they were able to find a mobile home and will be moving in December 21st Darla is pregnant with triplets, one of which is not doing well. Assuming the babies are healthy enough a C-section is planned for January 12. A car at this time of their lives would be such a tremendous help. With triplets she has many doctor appointments now and there most likely be numerous doctor appointments for the babies for the first few months. Darla will be needing a vehicle to take care of the daily needs of life. Thank you for considering this family ______________________________________________________________________ Eileen is a beautiful person with a downs syndrome son. She lives in DeSoto and works in Olathe, She also has two grandsons that are in foster care right now and she is trying to gain custody so that they can have a stable life and be together with family. She recently had her very first accident ever and totalled her vehicle. She is having to find rides to work and appointments. She has no way to go grocery shopping and has to find someone to give her rides to her visitations with the grandsons, Eileen is theperfect recipient for cars 4 christmas and it would be great if you would allow her to get the freedom she needs to continue doing all the great thngs she does with her time. ______________________________________________________________________ Katherine is a single mother struggling with three children. She works part-time at Subway making minimum wage or just above and is trying to start her own Avon business. I give her rides when I can. And to make things worse, her youngest has asthma. My heart really goes out to her. She does the best she can with what she has. As a matter of fact I have taken her job searching a couple of times. I'm not sure if she is trying to work another job or just trying to find something better. I have been in this young woman's house and she doesn't even have living room furniture. She is a good mother. Her girls are in band and her son is on the National Acedemic League team every year where he competes with other schools. If this young woman and her children don't deserve a car, I don't know who does! ______________________________________________________________________ Sgt. Eric xxxxxx served in Iraq with the U.S. Army Reserves February 2003 to April 2004. During his deployment he was injured and he has since been rated by the VA at 80% for his injuries. Because of his injuries he is unable to be employed and his family continues to struggle financially. He and his devoted wife and two young children are in need of a car as theirs recently broke down and is too costly to replace, -Submitted by The Missouri Veterans Commission _______________________________________________________________________

"Brandi Klamm is the 20 year old mother of two children. She and her children reside in Lawrence. Her 2 year old son, Evan, was born with optic nerve hypoplasia and is blind. He receives orientation/mobility and other special education services, and also has frequent neurology and opthamology appointments in Kansas City. Brandi also has a 7 month old son, Xavier. Even though Brandi lives in Lawrence, she only trusts leaving Evan at her mother's home childcare in DeSoto, which also constitutes alot of driving. Brandi works long hours, but dreams of someday being able to attend nursing school. She has a high school diploma and some college experience, and is capable of pursuing these goals with the assistance and guidance of appropriate support systems. However, due to recent financial difficulties, Brandi recently had her car repossessed, which will make it nearly impossible for her to be eligible for any kind of loan. A relative is briefly allowing Brandi to borrow her car, but this is a very temporary situation. She will not be able to meet her children's needs (especially Evan's), or maintain and progress in her capacity to provide for her children without reliable transportation. "Please consider this young family for your program. They are trying so hard to move forward, and transportation is such a major piece of helping this family function as effectively as possible. Thank you for your time and attention." - Susan

Pamela

"Her name is Pamela and she will be by the phone tomorrow morning between 9-10 am. She started crying when I told her she was nominated. She came to shelter in August and now lives on her own. She walks to the bus stop at 4pm and gets off at midnight-taking the bus home. She is working at a restaurant and going back to college in the Spring to become a nurse. Her abuser kept her locked in a house with bars and locks on the doors and windows and didn’t allow her to finish college. "Call me on my cell if you have questions. I have another couple recipients that I am working on for radio that we could do next week. One in particular I will write her story to read and then we can call her- she is in shelter and safety is a big issue for her so we will change her name etc." - Trish

Family In Need

"I would like to nominate a family for a van. "The family was displaced to Kansas City from Seattle as a result of a medical tragedy. The family, consisting of two parents and four kids were on vacation from Seattle to Salina, Kansas visiting family when one of their children began to complain of numbness in her arms and legs. After further complaints, her parents took her to the local hospital. Not recognizing the severity of the medical issue, doctors misdiagnosed this nine- year old girl with strep throat and sent her home from the hospital. She returned to the hospital with her father the following day with continued physical complaints. Eventually being seen by a physician, it was determined that she be transported by life flight from Salina, Kansas to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City. Her parents later learned that she suffered from a condition called AVM: Arterial Venous Malformation. This condition has a prevalence of one in three million people. As a result of her stroke, she suffers from quadriplegia. She is bound to a wheelchair and has minimal movement of her arms and legs. "The family has sold most of what they owned including household belongings and vehicles to allow them to stay in the Kansas City area and maintain the level of treatment for their nine- year old daughter. Some family members stayed at the Ronald McDonald House for nearly 6 months until she was released for out patient treatment. Their oldest son, once separated from his family as his sister got treatment, is now able to reunite with his family in the Kansas City area. "Until lately they have been without a vehicle and have been transporting groceries by bicycle from the grocery store. Recently they have been able to temporarily borrow a car, though this will end after the holidays. The car that they currently have borrowed does not allow enough room for the family and does not have a chairlift. If the family goes anywhere she must ‘drive’ her motorized wheelchair outside while her family drives along side her. "The family needs a van with a wheelchair lift. Receiving this van will allow the family freedom to maintain medical appointments on time, obtaining her necessary medical treatment. In addition, this donation will allow the family to travel within their community, in a typical manner to carry out daily tasks. Receiving this van would be a generous step in the family’s physical, emotional and financial recovery. This van would allow the family to meet the medical needs essential for her treatment and recovery. In addition, having accessible transportation would allow her parents to meet the daily living needs of the family for all four of their children. "Please consider this family for a van. They are such deserving candidates."

Sylvia

"My sister died 9/11/05, her husband died 12/30/05 leaving my two nieces and nephew and great neice in their parents home which was in backruptcy. They were forced to move in Feb of 06 on my niece Sylvia's income that she earns in the photo lab at Wal-mart. After all the heartache that they had suffered this year the car she was driving was repossessed by the dealership due to the fact that it was included in her parents bankruptcy. She is a student at Penn Valley College in the Nursing program and works full time. She has to ask people for rides to and from work, struggles to keep a roof over her and her two siblings and three year old daughters head, food on the table etc... "Just writing this little paragraph has me tearing up. I do not know of anyone in this city who deserves a car based on tragedy more than her. If she had a car she would be able to go to and from work which is the only way that this family will be able to stay out of a homeless shelter and for her to better her life by obtaining a education in nursing. Thank you for your consideration." - Sylvia's Aunt DD

Lynn

"I work with Lynn. She is a single mother of 4 kids. She has one child with asthma and no car. The last one she had the motor locked up. She receive's no child support. She relies on others to get to work. She is scared to death her son is going to have a asthma attack and she will not be able to transport him. She recently told her children their will be no money for Halloween costumes and very little for Christmas. She told me her 16 year old ask her why she keeps trying so hard. She replied "what am I to do give up?" There is no quit in her bones and I only wish I had her care and kindness for others. A car would be a life changer for her."

Jamie

"About two years ago, Jamie, a client in our Early Head Start program, lost her mother. This is difficult for any girl, but especially a high schooler who is pregnant, wanting to go to Prom with her boyfriend and ready graduate later that spring. Losing a mother was difficult for the whole family; Jamie has three sisters and a younger brother with special needs. This left Jamie's father to care for them on his own, something he had not done before. All of this stress eventually lead to depression; depression for Jamie's father and for Jamie herself. Fortunately, Jamie was able to receive counseling to help her recover; but nothing will be able to give her daughter the grandmother that Jamie had hoped she would know. Despite these obstacles, Jamie has been very committed to her child. She reads to her daily, promotes development through play and cares for her health by getting her to the doctor on time. She has also tried to maintain a relationship with her daughter's father, but his unresolved anger issues have made this difficult. Instead, Jamie has been raising her on her own. Jamie has also been helping to raise her brother by staying in her father's home and providing as much support as possible. However, Jamie's father is out of work and depressed, making it difficult to live in that environment. Jamie would like to have her own place to stay and would like to provide quality experiences for her daughter but has found this to be difficult without a job; a job is difficult to get without transportation. Jamie did find work at the Oak Park Mall, cleaning tables in the Food Court; something a lot of people may not be willing to do. But she is hoping this job will help her save money to buy a car; with a car she will join the Electrical Laborers Union to gain a skill and some experience that would help her obtain a well-paying, consistent job. Making it even tougher for Jamie is that she must rely on her father for transportation and he asks for $20 every time he drives her to work."

Michelle

"Michelle is an exceptional person and a wonderful mother. She has been struggling for the last year. She moved here from Texas to start her life over from an abusive husband. She had gotten a really good job and was starting to get on her feet when she was laid off in March. While she was searching for another job, her car broke down and was in need of an engine. It was a very old car so she ended up just scrapping it. She has three children 16, 15 and 13. It is very hard for her to get her children to the doctor or any thing else. even the grocery store. Her thirteen year old daughter has a skin condition and it's hard for her to get rides to the dermotologist. Her sons dropped out of sports because they could not get to practices and games. It's been very hard on the kids especially. It's hard for her to get a job with no transportation. She doesn't live on the bus line. She has already told her kids that they weren't getting anything for christmas this year. I have gone over to her house and she has her Christmas tree up with no ornaments and nothing under the tree. Michelle is trying very hard to keep positive for the kids this Christmas. It would be the best Christmas in the world for her and her children if they got a car. Michelle is such a wonderful and giving person. She has made a difference in my life as a good friend. She would help anybody in need if she is able to do it. She always has a smile on her face no matter what kind of bad day she is having. She really deserves this car and I think the boys would get more involved in school if they had permanent transportation." Thank you, Pam