Duct Tape, Baling Wire, and Tenacity
“tenacity - the quality of being very determined, persistent, and unwilling to give up, especially when facing difficulties, delays, or obstacles.”
What does it look like when someone refuses to give up in the face of extreme hardship? Ask Jeannette, a full-time nurse who was somehow getting her son to school, herself to work, and her grandmother to essential care despite having no working vehicle. Or ask Sheila, who was holding her family together from behind the wheel of a van with 250,000 miles and literally held together with duct tape and baling wire. The tenacity of our latest two clients (#279 and 280) amazes us!
More than Rehab nominated Jeannette, one of their full-time nurses, after her high-mileage SUV died. When we gave her a savings stretch goal to complete as an action step before getting a vehicle, she doubled it before she even got to the interview stage! She successfully saved over $800 despite having no working vehicle to get to work, school, or her grandmother’s.
Sheila was nominated by one of our favorite local organizations, The Nest! She has faithfully attended their weekly support meetings for the last four years and volunteers with their street outreach team. She and her husband are raising multiple children and grandchildren while working multiple jobs. And we weren’t kidding about the duct tape and baling wire holding her old van together! Yet Sheila wouldn’t let that keep her from working hard to provide for her family.
Both women demonstrate the tenacity we look for in our clients, as well as the heart to serve and generous spirit that so inspire us. We are grateful that with your help, we were able to gift reliable Toyotas to both of them.
There are more men and women like Jeannette and Sheila waiting. People who are already doing the hard work. They just need a reliable car to carry them the rest of the way. That's where you come in. Can you help us by donating a reliable vehicle or funds to help us purchase one?