PENDLETON — Kim Austin couldn’t help but smile Wednesday as she looked at the 1999 Buick Century wrapped in white paper with a giant red bow.

The car, she knew, would help change her life.

Austin was the recipient of local collision repair shop Riley and Sons’ annual giveaway, a program the business uses to identify a deserving person in the community who could use a refurbished car to get back on his or her feet. The shop purchased the Buick, repaired it — mainly addressing mechanical malfunctions — and readied it to give to Austin and her two grandchildren, Blake and Star.

Each year, Riley and Sons reaches out to local service organizations looking for applicants for the car giveaway. They must be in need of the car and be committed to bettering their lives. The business has given away cars for eight years with the exclusion of last year when it spent money purchasing its new shop in Pendleton.

“It’s one of the most exciting things we do all year,” Riley and Sons co-owner Dave Driggers said. “We just feel blessed to help.”

Austin felt blessed too, she said, as she and her grandchildren checked out the car’s interior. Star climbed in the driver’s seat and honked the horn before the two children scrambled into the back seat of the car.

“I’m still kind of in shock a little bit,” Austin said. “I really didn’t think I even had a chance of winning.”

Austin was nominated for the car by Amy Sturgeon at The Children’s Bureau. Austin has lived at Alternatives Inc., a transitional shelter for women, since Sept. 1 and took in her two grandchildren after their mother and father left. She plans to start classes at Ivy Tech Community College in January and will study to be a paralegal.

Not having a car has made it difficult for Austin to get back on her feet, she said. She lost a part-time job she had when transportation became a problem, and Star and Blake have been sick from having to walk to school in the cold, she said.

“She is one of the most motivated clients I’ve ever worked with,” Sturgeon said of Austin. “You can see how not having a car affects her not being able to improve herself. She took in two unruly kids; she just adapted her life. To me, that’s one of the most unselfish things.”

To be eligible for the car, Austin had to fill out an application, write an essay and complete an interview. Star and Blake drew pictures for the Riley and Sons staff.

“They have to really make sure you’re committed,” Austin said. “(Sturgeon) knows how hard I’ve been working.”

Sturgeon’s nominating letter praised Austin for overcoming the adversity in her life and trying to better herself.

“I have witnessed a genuinely invested woman willing to do what she needs to provide for children that have been abandoned,” her letter reads.

Riley and Sons workers did all the repairs on the car, which took about 20-25 hours, and took up a collection for other needs of the family. Sponsors provided car insurance, fuel cards and gifts for the family.

Driggers said Sturgeon’s letter about Austin stuck out to him and the Riley and Sons staff.

“Yours caught our eye,” he said. “I think everyone can see how difficult it can be not to have transportation.”

Applicants for the car must meet certain criteria, Riley and Sons benevolence program coordinator Laura Beth Blevins said, including not owning a vehicle and being able to afford maintenance and continued liability on the car. They also must have a valid driver’s license and a clean driving record.

“What we look for is a candidate that is truly trying to help themselves,” Driggers said. “It’s a hand-up, not a handout.”



Contact Aleasha Sandley: 640-4805, aleasha.sandley@heraldbulletin.com.



At a glance

Riley and Sons car giveaway sponsors include:

* Auto Glass of Indiana

* Wendy Gooding ­— State Farm Agency

* Sheri Rigney — American National Insurance Agency

* Enterprise Rent-A-Car

* CarQuest of Anderson

* Ben Coster and Jeanne Custer — State Farm Agency

* Tire Barn of Anderson

* LKQ of Indiana

* D Ashley Design + Events