For two years, Shannon Willis got to her job as a medication aide and receptionist at Keystone Villas the hard way — hitching rides from coworkers, booking Uber trips, or catching public transit whenever her schedule allowed. That changed when she was handed the keys to her own vehicle, a gift that she says still feels like a blessing.
Willis received the car through the Cars for Caregivers program, a partnership between the Nebraska Health Care Foundation and Chariots4Hope, according to KETV. Before the gift, Willis had gone two years without a car of her own, leaning on coworkers, rideshare apps and public transit just to make it to her shifts, the station reports. Now, with a vehicle in her name, she says she can get to work, run errands and build toward more financial independence — and even return the favor by giving coworkers a ride when they need one.
“I really appreciate this it's really a blessing to me,” Willis said, according to the station's report.
A Program Built Around a Workforce Gap
The Cars for Caregivers initiative was created specifically to address transportation as a barrier for people working in Nebraska's nursing homes and assisted living communities, according to KLKN. The station describes the program's goal as removing transportation obstacles for those caring for the state's seniors. It was developed collaboratively by the Nebraska Health Care Association and its foundation, which refers eligible candidates to Chariots4Hope, according to a report from McKnight's.
The support doesn't stop at a handed-over set of keys. McKnight's reports that the program also helps address financial burdens beyond simply obtaining a vehicle, including insurance, gas and maintenance costs. Organizers told the outlet they provide classes on maintaining a vehicle, insurance, driving and other responsibilities that come with car ownership, aiming to set recipients up for long-term success rather than a one-time handout.
Vehicle Counts Vary Across Reports
Exactly how many vehicles have gone out through the program depends on which account you read. KETV's report on Willis's gift states it was the fifth vehicle donated that year to caregivers choosing to work in senior-center settings. McKnight's, however, reports that nine vehicles have been donated to date, and separately notes the program had awarded vehicles to four long-term-care employees since its January launch. The outlets have not reconciled how those figures relate to one another or what time frames they cover, but McKnight's does note the program had been eyeing a fifth car donation by year's end after initially targeting just one.
Willis isn't the first to benefit. Samantha Gammell was the program's very first recipient, according to KLKN, and she described her prior vehicle troubles bluntly, saying coworkers would sometimes have to give her a jump start or a ride to work. McKnight's reports Gammell has since been able to travel with her son to an out-of-state wrestling competition and reliably get her daughter to medical appointments. A separate Hillcrest recipient profiled by KETV had spent three years working mainly in the facility's memory care unit before receiving a car; that report notes caregivers in need are nominated by other staff members and that selected recipients receive instruction on insurance and registration as part of the handoff.
Why Organizers Say It Matters
Nebraska Health Care Foundation leaders have framed the program as something that creates ripple effects beyond the daily commute. KETV reports organizers describing the goal in terms of self-sufficiency, saying recipients can gain the freedom to do things beyond just getting to work. A Facebook post marking what it called the second Cars for Caregivers vehicle blessing showed NHCA President and CEO Jalene Carpenter joined by Chariots4Hope Founder and CEO Jason Hurt, underscoring that the handoffs have become something of a recurring celebration for the organizations involved.
For Willis, the practical upshot is simpler: a shift that once meant coordinating rides now just means getting in her own car and driving. With the vehicle in hand, she said she now plans to pay it forward by offering coworkers rides of their own when they need the help she once relied on.
