W4H Asheville

A dependable car leads to more time at home and work, and in most cases, an increase in income. Most program participants either add hours to their workday, seek a better paying job, or both. Surveys of our Purchase Program participants show that 70% report that a dependable car enables them to increase their income, 80% report an improvement in their housing, 95% report increased access to healthcare appointments, and 95% report increased access to healthcare appointments. For the Repair Program participants, we also ask them to share about crises averted and opportunities gained as a result of this service.

Working Wheels provides two programs, the Vehicle Purchase Program and the Vehicle Repair Program, enabling underprivileged working families in western North Carolina to own a functioning vehicle. The Purchase Program repairs and refurbishes donated cars and sells them to participants for $500, while the Repair Program offers deeply discounted repairs to car owners. The two programs serve 100% of low and moderate-income families referred by case managers from 16 area organizations helping people with a variety of serious issues. For families struggling with these issues, the lack of dependable transportation can be a primary barrier to overcoming them. Working Wheels focuses squarely on removing this barrier, one car, and one family at a time.

Western North Carolina has few public transportation options. That lack of flexibility keeps low- and moderate-income people without cars from improving their lives. Some families want to move to more affordable housing but cant because it isnt on a bus line. Some parents cant get child custody or visitation rights without a car. Getting to the food store, doctors appointments, school events, and jobs are things most people dont give a second thought to unless they dont have a vehicle. Relying on extremely limited public transit, taxis, and ride-sharing options like Uber or Lyft is expensive, inconvenient, time-consuming, and often denies these marginalized families opportunities to receive work promotions or regular healthcare; to socialize, shop, take classes, have their children participate in activities, and generally enjoy the benefits that the rest of the population takes for granted.

We have an enthusiastic and capable Board of Directors (BOD) that is working with the Executive Director to scale up the organization to serve more people. The BOD is made up of individuals with a wide range of skill sets and experiences and includes the voices of program participants and case managers. We also have a smart and passionate staff, fully capable of guiding the organization through a time of expansion.

The Purchase Program is growing, but slowly, as donated cars have been more difficult to secure since 2020. We will continue to implement creative strategies to increase the number and improve the quality of donated vehicles.

In 2020, Covid-19 impacted the availability of new cars, with the global auto industry producing nearly 4 million fewer vehicles than planned in 2021 (Washington Post 10/28/21). This, in turn, decreased the number of used cars being donated to Working Wheels. In response, Working Wheels started the Vehicle Repair Program, offering deep discounts to underprivileged people who otherwise could not afford to repair a vehicle they already owned. The Repair Program is growing quickly and can be scaled up as fast as we are able to find the funding to pay for the repairs and the organizational infrastructure.

Over the last ten years, we have collected 1,652 donated vehicles and successfully transformed 304 into dependable cars for the Purchase Program. The Repair Program began in 2020, and has served 335 people. In 2023, we served a total of 230 program participants through both programs. The goal for 2024 is to serve 425 people, directly impacting the lives of 1,275 individuals.