LYNN — The keys only fit one car, but for Victoria Sliman, they unlocked a future filled with opportunity.
Thanks to New England-based Good News Garage, Sliman is in the driver’s seat after receiving a 2016 Ford Escape with 142,000 miles.
“I’m ecstatic. I still can’t believe that it’s real,” Sliman said
With reliable transportation, Sliman will now attend North Shore Community College, where she is studying computer networking and security. She hopes to use her training to help law enforcement with human trafficking issues.
She also plans to use the vehicle to travel into Boston for work-related events, job interviews, and to take her children to Maine.
With the vehicle, Sliman now has the opportunity to show up for her daughter in ways that matter most — from driving her and her friends to spending more quality time together — something they both take great pride in.
“I’m now able to be one of the moms that gives the rides to all the girls that go hang out together. My daughter really loves that. She really does,” she said.
To find individuals who need vehicles, Good News Garage partners with MassAbility, a state program that helps people who’ve been out of work — often due to health issues, workplace injuries, physical or mental health challenges, or addiction — complete rehabilitation and re-enter the workforce, according to Good News Garage Spokesperson Tom Kupfer.
“The vehicle is usually one of the final pieces of the puzzle for them to become self-sufficient and get back out into the workforce,” he said.
Sliman previously completed a MassAbility program, earning a CompTIA Security+ certification.
“I would not have been able to do it without them,” Sliman said, highlighting the price of the exam and coursework.
MassAbility recommends clients receive vehicles through Good News Garage, which is the only partner organization in the Commonwealth, Kupfer said.
Staff at Good News Garage then match each recommended client with a donated vehicle that has been inspected, repaired and deemed safe to put back on the road.
The organization focuses on economical, easy-to-maintain cars, typically 8- to 10-year-old Toyotas, Subarus and Hondas — to keep ownership costs manageable for drivers.
“It’s their car once we pass them the keys — they own it and can do what they want with it,” Kupfer said. “We offer a one-year warranty, so if there’s a mechanical issue it’s taken care of at one of our partner garages, and the recipient doesn’t have to worry about those early maintenance costs.”
He added, “Good News Garage remains one of just a handful of options, even across the entire country, that actually places donated cars back with lower-income folks that need reliable transportation. A lot of the competition, the majority of it, just sells every donated car at auction and uses the proceeds for whatever it is they do.”
Good News Garage launched in Burlington, Vermont, in 1996 as one of the nation’s first car donation nonprofits providing affordable and reliable transportation options for people in need. They have since expanded to Massachusetts and New Hampshire, and Good News Garage has provided nearly 6,000 New England families with reliable vehicles. The organization’s goal is to increase opportunities for its clients to move out of poverty and into financial and social stability.
