Feature

To Comment on this article Click Here

Jennifer Richards was having trouble making ends meet, without worrying about car repairs.

However, the single mom from Lucknow depends on her vehicle so knew she had to get it fixed.

When she took it to a garage, it was going to cost about $1,200 to $1,500 in repairs. Fortunately, she heard about the CARS Ministry and with the help of this volunteer group, she managed to get her car back on the road for about $400.

CARS stands for Christian Automotive Repair Service. Based in Wingham, the group has two licensed mechanics and about a half-dozen other volunteers who meet once a week at the shop to fix vehicles for those in need.

Working with the Maitland River Community Church in Wingham and the Wingham United Church, the CARS Ministry not only repairs vehicles but can take a donated vehicle and fix it up for someone who needs a car to get to work.

"It's a great feeling to help people who need it," says Mike Cowan, one of the licensed mechanics. "We had a single mom (Richards) who couldn't afford to fix her car and put meals on the table. Any repairs at a garage would cost $60/hour in labour plus the cost of parts. Here, we get the parts at cost and volunteer the labour."

A non-profit organization, the CARS Ministry has its own insurance and can do most vehicle repairs, including brakes, suspension work, tune-ups, oil changes, and changing motors.

"We do enough to keep a vehicle road-worthy," says Cowan.

The other licensed mechanic working with CARS is Al Lamon who owns a shop at the south end of Wingham.

CARS is run by a five-member board, including executive director Doug Kuyvenhoven, secretary-treasurer Albert Teeninga, Andrew Winger, Jack Wilkins, Doug Glasbergen, and Jeremy Hessels.

The ministry is modelled after one in Chicago, and Wingham's is the first one in Ontario.

Kuyvenhoven would like to see one in every small town throughout the province - a CARS Kincardine, a CARS Goderich, a CARS Hanover, and so on.

"We've had some interest out there through other churches," he says. "They could hook on to our insurance and our company name.

The CARS Ministry in Wingham opened about six months ago, but held off for the good weather to hold its grand opening and ribbon-cutting on Tuesday (June 1).

Speaking on behalf of Huron-Bruce MP Ben Lobb was constituency manager Bill Strong who congratulated the group for having the vision to develop this program.

Neil Vincent, reeve of North Huron, added his congratulations, noting the ministry is beneficial to many in the community. "It's great to give back to the community," he says. "Thank you for putting this together."

Tammy Heidbuurt of Operation Manna of Burlington, also offered her congratulations. "It's a privilege to participate in this event," she says, "and we look forward to this partnership, getting the program going and making it successful."

Operation Manna, a ministry of the Christian Reformed Church, provided seed money to get the CARS Ministry up and running. The funds, $25,000 over three to four years, have been used for tools and other requirements to set up the shop.

Mike Cowan (L) and Albert Teeninga check out the engine on a donated van

"I want to thank those who have donated used vehicles," he says. "We can fix them up and help out more people. I want to thank our volunteers who show up faithfully every Wednesday night to fix up these vehicles. But mostly I thank God who has provided everything to make all of this possible."

"We have about a dozen clients right now," says Wilkins. "The service is open to anybody who needs help with oil changes and minor repairs, but most of them come in by referral. We can also help them buy a car at a decent price, and because we can help with the costs, we encourage regular maintenance of the vehicles."

The CARS Ministry appreciates any and all used vehicles. Whatever can't be made road-worthy is used for parts and then the scrap vehicles are sold to raise money for the shop. Fund-raising events are also held to help pay the rent on the shop and for the insurance.

The slogan on the CARS Ministry T-shirts is: "Repairing Cars, Repairing Lives," and that is very true for Richards.

A member of the Maitland River Community Church, she was giving another church member a ride home when he noticed that the vehicle's tires were bald.

"I said that I realized that, but I just didn't know a lot about vehicles," says Richards. "He knew about the CARS Ministry, called up Albert (Teeninga) and they took my car in and fixed it up.

"I think it's awesome," she says. "I drive a school bus and money is tight. I needed help and they helped me out."

For more information about the CARS Ministry contact Kuyvenhoven at 519-531-0365 or doug@carsministry.ca, or check out the website at www.carsministry.ca

^{for world news, books, sports, movies ...}

Saturday, June 05, 2010