GOLDEN, Colo. (KDVR) — A local nonprofit organization that’s helped hundreds of single mothers in Colorado is calling on the community to support a great cause. Hands of the Carpenter has provided reliable and affordable vehicles to women in need and now they’re in need of donations and volunteers.
Most of the cars in the parking lot of the organization are donated and in the process of being repaired for a single mother who’s trying to balance children, work and getting from point A to point B. Rose Paz told FOX31 on Wednesday that she’s driving stress-free for the first time ever.
“It’s life-changing,” Paz said. “It was emotional, like a dream come true, to be placed in a car that is going to be reliable and to know that this company is going to hug you in a way that no one else can.”
Paz is one of the hundreds who received a helping hand from Hands of the Carpenter. Paz is a mother of three children and said for years, she was balancing multiple jobs to provide for her family and struggled with an unreliable car. Paz shared that she emptied out her savings for repairs, was often misled at auto-repair shops and overcharged, and even learned from YouTube to try and fix her own vehicle.
“It’s very difficult,” Paz explained. “If you don’t have it, it means you can’t go to the store, you can’t go to the doctors, you can’t go to work.”
Then, she learned of the organization through Nextdoor and traveled to Golden to learn more. For nearly two decades, the non-profit has been providing single mothers with car repairs, vehicles, maintenance, and car education.
“Honestly, I don’t know what I would’ve done if I didn’t find this program,” Paz said. “I probably would’ve lost my jobs.”
Dan Georgopulos, founder and CEO of Hands of the Carpenter, told FOX31 that he will continue to provide for his community and wants to encourage others to get involved. He says his passion is helping and seeing women and children’s faces light up, and it’s what keeps him going.
“To see one of the kids excited and inside the car because they don’t have to ride the bus for two hours each day to get to work and school each day, or the woman who’s about to lose her job because she didn’t have a reliable car; it’s tearful for sure,” Georgopulos said.
The organization is run with a familial culture. Georgopulos said they work tirelessly to repair everything from a cracked windshield to rebuilding a transmission, along with their partners, for a third of the cost, which saves these families a lot of money that can go toward essential things like groceries and housing.
“When something’s wrong with a car, it can cost a mom her job and their home, and eventually they end up on the streets,” Georgopulos said. “The biggest hurdle we can help them overcome is transportation.”
He added that the COVID-19 pandemic created a lot of unemployment and Colorado’s soaring housing market has increased the need for many women. To keep up with the high demand, the organization is expanding to a second location in Aurora, and that means more donated cars and more donated volunteers are needed.
“Really a smile and hug is what makes it so worthwhile,” Georgopulos told FOX31.
Worthwhile to help lighten the load for mothers carrying a full load alone. Last year alone, Hands for the Carpenter served 267 women, and this year that number is expected to reach well over 400.
The Aurora location is expected to open in late April. If you’d like to donate a car, four-door sedans, minivans, and small SUVs are encouraged, but not limited.