'Wheels for Success' donates cars to 55 families

Wheels for Success gives cars to needy families.

By Ashley Jeffery, Videojournalist
Last Updated:

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Additional Wheels for Success facts:

346 cars donated through 2010
50 percent of recipients are victims of domestic violence
All donated cars are repaired, if needed, at a discounted price
http://www.wheelsofsuccess.org/

TAMPA --

The wait is finally over for Yvette Williamson and more than 50 other families looking to get keys to their own cars.

"It's kind of not real," Williamson said. "I was doing the insurance and was like, Oh my God, you're getting a car. I didn't sleep at all last night."

Williamson hasn't had a car in two years and because of it she's been walking her son eight blocks to the bus stop and spending 45 minutes to get to a job that's only 10 minutes away from her home.

But now thanks to Wheels for Success giving her a car, Williamson can take her son to school and drive herself to work.

Wheels for Success founder Susan Jacobs says she knows first hand how much having some wheels can make a difference.

"I left a domestic violence situation with no car, no anything," Jacobs said.

But a stranger who happened to own a car lot gave her a car to get around. That's when Jacobs went on a mission to get even more families back on the road.

"When I can tell them 'I've been there,' and that's only your circumstance and not who you are," Jacobs said.

Each person getting a car is required to pay a small monthly fee and volunteer a few hours month to "pay it forward."

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