Brooke’s Car Award at Second Chance Cars, April 2025

When it is time for a car award at Second Chance Cars, Dan Holin likes to gather the “community of goodness” in his office and pause. The community he’s referring to includes the donor of a car to his organization, the recipient of the car, the mechanics, and the organizations and sponsors who facilitated the connections.

Sitting in a circle in his light-filled office, he opens by saying, “I like to take a deliberate effort to pause on a happy moment.”

He encourages the circle of people to tell the story of what led to this moment. “Most of us live in spaces that have people that are like us, people that we have known for a while, people that come from the same social circles. But these car award events bring people who likely would have never come together into the same room. So at a minimum, it’s interesting, and at the outside, it’s rewarding and fun. So this is another reason to pause.  And it never fails in these kinds of meetings that we discover what we have in common.”

The circle gathered for Brooke and her family included Women’s Money Matters. A year ago, Brooke enrolled in a three-month financial wellness program with WMM and was paired with a personal coach. Brooke impressed her coach, Suzanne, with her dedication to learn and take advantage of the opportunity to manage her finances with the next level of skill and planning. Suzanne was so impressed by Brooke’s determination and progress that she drafted a personal recommendation for her to be eligible for a car award through Second Chance Cars.

Brooke’s personal story includes years of profound challenges, and at 50, she has accomplished a personal transformation that includes over 15 years of sobriety, reconnection with her children and family stability, and the beginning of a new career in relief work. Through the Open Sky Community Services, she has trained as a mental health worker and is poised to begin a new job in a shelter.

Her face beams with warmth and joy as she describes how excited she is to enter work every day as a supportive and encouraging presence for others who are struggling.

With the new job comes the new challenge of transportation, and this is where Second Chance Cars comes in to help. One of the criteria in selecting applicants is the need for transportation to work, “Let’s get to work” being one of their taglines. Brooke’s WMM coach, Suzanne, crafted her recommendation, and the team at Second Chance Cars worked with them to review the financial options and details.

“I have no debt, but I also have no credit, and this car is providing much more than transportation to my new job.” With an interest-free loan, Brooke’s credit score will increase, opening more options for the future.

This is the synergy of factors that is needed to truly support someone as they work to overcome the challenges, stay positive, and transform their financial future.

It takes the circle of goodness, a mix of mission-driven organizations, and individuals who are determined to make a difference.

Holin’s invitation to pause on a happy moment had all of the elements of a new beginning—gratitude, tears, a network of community support, and the keys to a reliable car for the road ahead.

See the video Dan recorded for Brooke’s car award on YouTube

Carla Poulos, Senior Manager of Programs & Advocacy, worked closely with Brooke’s WMM coach to move through the application for Second Chance Cars.

Dan Holin together with Brooke’s family next to their new-to-them Prius.

The donors of the Prius and Brooke connect over a shared background in social work.