How teaming up with Brother Bill’s allowed us to give Client #29 an on-ramp to independence
One of the unexpectedly best parts of what we get to do at OnRamp DFW is the privilege of partnering with other non-profits in DFW. I never realized how many people and organizations were working behind the scenes in our community to give support to folks whose lives took an unexpected turn, and I’m proud to now personally know many of these wonderful organizations and the people staffing them.
Because we are one of the only organizations in DFW focused on solving transportation challenges, we’ve gotten to meet and work with a lot of these non-profits. Somehow, they inevitably find their way to us whenever the people they support reach an impasse because of a lack of a vehicle.
Brother Bill’s Helping Hand is well known in North Texas for their pioneering work in South Dallas, both in meeting immediate needs such as groceries and health care, but also by changing people’s trajectory through services like job training and financial coaching. My family has volunteered several times in their grocery store and Christmas events and I have seen firsthand how devoted they are at using resources well to give people a hand up toward self-sufficiency.
Our most recent client found her way to Brother Bill’s when she moved to Dallas and found herself in a rocky spot. She joined their Empowering Financial Futures program, where she has faithfully worked hard for six months toward financial independence - learning how to improve her income, credit, reduce debt, budget effectively and save for the future. Though she has made huge strides in her knowledge, she had become trapped by her lack of a vehicle. The time and money she was spending on public transportation and ride shares kept her stuck on the frontage road of life, barely treading water financially. With a vehicle, she can now travel further to find a higher-paying job and can start saving for her long-term education and business ownership goals.
On a chilly morning at the Garland tax office, we joyfully handed her the keys to a Honda Fit that had been donated to us a few months prior. There were tears shed as she talked about her thankfulness to God, Brother Bill’s, and OnRamp DFW. Then we prayed for blessing for her, for long life for the car, and thanked God for the ways He has similarly cared for each of us.
This Christmas season, we want to invite you to help us reach out with God’s love to people in DFW who could use our help. Would you consider making a donation to OnRamp DFW so we can continue helping people with a hand-up?
