‘No car payments’: Gift of refurbished car to help KC mom find job, get kids to school

Tyisha Russell’s voice cracked and she nearly broke out in tears as she talked about what the gift of a car would mean to her and her family.

“I want to say I’m really grateful and I’m really happy and I don’t know really what to say,” said Russell, a single-mother of four, including two children with special needs. “But I’m really grateful for everybody that did everything to help me and my babies get back and forth to appointments and school and all of their medical things.”

The Urban League of Greater Kansas City, in collaboration with Geico, CARSTAR and Meineke, gave Russell the Honda Accord as part of the National Auto Body Council’s Recycled Rides program. The Urban League also filled the trunk with groceries when they presented her the keys Wednesday morning outside its Paseo Boulevard office.

“This is an exciting day for us,” said Gwen Grant, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City. “It’s a beautiful day to be able to make this gift to Tyisha Russell and her family.”

Geico had reached out about a year ago asking the Urban League to identify a family that could benefit from a gift of a refurbished car to provide reliable transportation.

It’s a pretty lengthy process to make sure that the vehicle is in “tiptop shape” and the title is clear, Grant said. The Urban League also wanted to make sure it chose a parent with the greatest need for a vehicle.

It’s all part of the Urban League’s day-to-day services to help disadvantaged populations in Kansas City overcome barriers and challenges so they can become economically self sufficient. The Urban League will continue working with Russell to help make sure she’s able to maintain the vehicle.

Russell is responsible for getting the car licensed, tagged and insured.

Grant said she would like to be able to give away cars more often, but said there’s a lot of technicalities involved that require a lot of human resources.

“It’s something that we do want to pursue,” she said. “It would be great to be able to do this at least once or twice a year.”

It’s very difficult to get around Kansas City to manage your life and get to jobs that pay livable wages if you don’t have reliable transportation, Grant said.

“Many of the jobs that pay upwards of $15 to $20 an hour are not located in the central city,” Grant said. “Our primary client base are folks who reside in the urban core and when we want to connect them with viable career opportunities in Kansas City, transportation is often a barrier.”

Russell’s family, who didn’t have reliable transportation, was selected because they have dealt with numerous challenges over the past several years. Her oldest child remains severely injured after a car accident in 2020 shattered her spinal cord. Her youngest child has had a dislocated collarbone since birth.

Now, not only will Russell be able to get her children to and from their doctor’s appointments and schools in the Raytown School District, she will also be able to use it to find work.

“She recently had to give up her job because she did not have the transportation to get to work on time,” Grant said. “So today this is a life-changing gift.”

The vehicle was a recovered one with little damage, Jordan Kleoppel, a supervisor at Geico, said in a news release.

“We knew, based on its condition, that it would be a great candidate to donate to someone in need,” Kleoppel said. “We always to try to look for reliable vehicles with low miles to ensure the recipient will have a quality and comfortable mode of transportation to enjoy for many years to come.”

Since its inception, the Recycle Rides program has donated more than 3,000 vehicles.

After getting the keys, Russell said she was excited and grateful. She also said she felt blessed, pointing out this car will allow her to look for a job and take her children places, including the park and the pool.

“It’s all mine,” she said. “No car payments or anything.”