 |
Date Published: November 14, 2007
"The keys to freedom "
By JAMIE HUDSON
Three victims of domestic violence drove away on the road to a new beginning Saturday as each was presented with keys to a car. With tears in their eyes, each woman thanked those who made the gifts possible.
The effort was a combination of local residents donating the cars, local shops donating the labor to fix up the cars and a national auto parts supplier donating the needed parts.
Bumper to Bumper Auto Parts announced earlier this year that it was pairing up with Charity Cars, a nonprofit group based in Florida, in an effort to give 500 cars to domestic violence victims across the nation.
Sumter's original goal was 10 cars, but it fell short. No matter, any donation gives hope to its recipients and to other women out there who need help out of a bad situation, said Rick Towne, president of ASWA Inc., the company that owns Bumper to Bumper Auto Parts.
Two of the three recipients were anonymously mingling in the crowd in front of the Piggly Wiggly on Broad Street as the festivities went on. All three women applied for the cars with the YWCA of the Upper Lowlands Inc. Their names are changed to protect their identities.
"Christine" said she was physically abused by her spouse but it was his constant angry tirades that made her decide to leave.
But life on her own was more difficult than she planned.
"It was hard to get from one place to the next," she said.
"Kathryn" just moved out of the YWCA's Safe House three weeks ago and said she was at the end of her rope when she left her husband after years of abuse.
"My life will change a great deal," she said.
Towne said giving the cars away marked a monumental occasion.
"It's a huge victory," he said.
Towne said one of the biggest factors in removing a person out of an abusive situation is giving her the keys, literally, to her freedom.
"If there's a light at the end of the tunnel, they will get out and stay out. If they see nothing sustainable, they will go back to that situation," he said.
Towne said that he hopes the program will not only touch the recovering victims but also those who feel trapped by domestic violence.
He said just by holding the event in a public area that a victim, perhaps shopping at a neighboring store, could see it and gain the confidence to "step away from an abusive situation."
"It brings it out into the public," he said.
Carey Cook, owner of Cook's Repair, said his shop's contribution "stems from a family tradition of helping people" in the community.
"We are glad Bumper to Bumper took this on as a cause," Cook said.
Wendell Turner of Turner's Garage on Harvin Street said his workers spent 12 to 15 hours getting the vehicle up to par. Seeing the fruits of their labor was the payoff.
"We like seeing that we made a difference," he said. "They (victims) thanked us. They got all teary-eyed."
Jackie Clemmons, of J & J Towing, said the experience left him anxious to help out more women next year.
"It helps get these ladies on their feet," Clemmons said.
The charitable donations even prompted Clemmons' wife, LeAnn, to help the women. LeAnn Clemmons, retail store manager at Sun Com off Wesmark Boulevard, donated a cell phone to each car recipient.
"We want to help out any way we can," she said.
YWCA Shelter Manager Lois Guess said she went through an intense process to help the women get the cars.
"We were determined that they would get them," she said.
Guess said they filled out applications for three women and the charity picked the YWCA applicants.
Now, she said, the women are paying the good deed forward.
"I'm going to give back," Christine said, adding that she wants to help transport victims to and from the Safe House.
Towne said the organization's contribution barely scrapes the surface of Sumter's need.
"If we had 100 cars, you've got enough victims in Sumter to take every one of them," he said.
"The biggest thing is to bring awareness to domestic violence," Towne added. "It just needs to stop."
|
|
|
