CARS of America donates $2,400 to domestic violence shelter

CARS of America Inc. has donated $2,400 to Women in Need Growing Stronger (WINGS), a Palatine organization that serves homeless and abused women and children. CARS has donated a refurbished vehicle or a cash contribution every year since 2005, when the company adopted victims of domestic violence as its primary charitable cause.

When Bob Dupre, CARS’ founder and director of business development, learned that 25 percent of the female population is either a victim of domestic violence or knows a victim, it became important to him to support organizations like WINGS on a regular basis.

This year's donation will be used for transportation needs of the residents, according to Terri Channer, senior director of development for WINGS. The Safe House Transportation Fund is used in a variety of ways:

·         to pay for taxi vouchers that allow women to maintain court dates and doctor appointments for themselves and their children;

·         to provide Metra and Pace passes that make it possible for women to get to their jobs;

·         to buy gas cards that help the women pay for their gas;

·         to help women with needed car repairs that make it possible to carry on with their day-to-day lives.

Donations like the one from CARS are critical for WINGS, which receives less than 25 percent of its budget from the government, Channer said. During the last fiscal year, the group provided 430 women and children with 67,652 nights of shelter.

Women enter WINGS with little or no income, transportation, childcare or access to affordable housing. WINGS provides a support system that helps women secure a job, live in reasonably priced housing and have access to subsidized daycare. But without reliable transportation, many women are unable to stay employed or even get to an initial job interview.

"While mass transit is an option for those who live in the northwest suburbs and work in downtown Chicago, intra-suburban public transportation is spotty at best," Channer said. "WINGS has received generous donations of gently used automobiles for some of our residents, but often the cost of repairs and even of gas becomes prohibitive."

Brian Blohm is the Service Manager and Managing Partner - Operations CARS of America in Glenview. He is an ASE-Certified Automotive Service Technician and ASE-Certified Service Advisor with more than 25 years of automotive experience. A graduate of Triton College with an associate's degree in Automotive Technology, he has continued his training and education with the Automotive Training Institute and RL O'Connor. You can reach Brian via email at brianb@carsofamericainc.com or by phone at (847) 961-4363.