West Virginia Public Radio BroadcastingTranscript for June 18, 2001
GOOD NEWS MOUNTAINEER GARAGE
Host Introduction: A West Virginia University study shows that one out of four welfare recipients say they have problems getting transportation to perspective jobs or work training programs. As Public Broadcasting's Susan Leffler reports, a new program that recycles donated used cars is trying to help low income people get on the road.
Leffler: The non-profit Good News Mountaineer Garage is soliciting donated vehicles that can be repaired for a reasonable amount and then sold for a dollar to people trying to transition from welfare to work in Kanawha and Lincoln counties. Project Director, Barbara Bayes says the Garage is accepting vehicles from all over West Virginia and bordering states. West Virginia donors are eligible for a state tax credit and a federal tax deduction.
Bayes: People call in and say "I have a car that I'm interested in donating" and we do a screening over the phone to see if the car is fixable. Once that screening is determined we accept the car and we get it appraised for the repair. We're trying to keep the repair costs from $1,000 to $1,100.
Leffler: Then the vehicle is sent to a mechanic. Once it's inspected and ready the Garage delivers it to a TANIF or welfare to work program family that's been chosen by the Department of Health and Human Resources. There's an allotment of fifteen hundred dollars per vehicle so if there's money left over from the repairs the family can spend the rest on insurance and transfer fees. Bayes says the Garage will also provide long term support so the new owners can keep the car on the road.
Bayes: After the recipient receives the car we're going to ask that they come back in for maintenance checks and also training on how to keep the car running and in good shape and safe.
Leffler: She says the Garage will try to set up a network of volunteer mechanics to help with routine maintenance and troubleshooting. The idea for the program originated with the first Good News Garage in Burlington, Vermont. Founder, Hal Colston says it's provided vehicles to 650 families and helped get 75% of them off of welfare. Colston who is acting as a consultant to the West Virginia Garage says it will create a triple win situation.
Colston: The donor wins because they'll be able to part with a vehicle and experience a tax deduction or a tax credit. And the recipient wins because they are able to afford and own a vehicle that's going to change their lives. And the community wins because we now can see the seeds of economic justice that will bring more people into the economy and make this a better place.
Leffler: Observers agree that transportation is key to prospering in today's society. Charleston historian and writer, Dr. Ancella Bickley says the days when people could support themselves on the farm or live in a coal camp near the job are over.
Bickley: Communities have changed. Businesses, corporations, companies and whatnot have in recent years located themselves in places that are often distant from where other people live and particularly in a place like West Virginia where many of us still live in areas that are remote from towns, it is vital that some kind of transportation be made available if people are going to get to work.
Leffler: The Good News Mountaineer Garage hopes to be able to start distributing cars to people moving from welfare to work in July. To donate a vehicle call 1-866-GIVECAR. For West Virginia Public Broadcasting, I'm Susan Leffler in Charleston.