Sunnie Helling
For years, while Sunnie struggled with addiction to alcohol, Sunnie and her daughters lived with whomever would take them in. Everything changed after she entered the women’s recovery program at the Union Gospel Mission (UGM).
While in the program at UGM, Sunnie worked to transform her life beyond recovering from addiction.
She earned her GED and now works part-time at the Adult Education Center at NIC while studying full-time. She’ll graduate with an associate degree in the spring, walking alongside her 17-year-old daughter, who is dual-enrolled at NIC and plans to pursue a bachelor’s degree at Lewis-Clark State College. She has been sober for nearly four years.
Sunnie's previous car was barely running, and she was referred to the Rides program by the Center for New Directions. Sunnie is a full-time student and works part-time, so she meets all the requirements to purchase a Rides vehicle!
As Sunnie waited for a vehicle to be available for purchase, she pursued the Budgeting Course offered by Mountain West Bank. Joy with MWB shared:
"When I met Sunnie, I knew she had the drive to do what it takes for her and her daughters...Among [everything] on her plate, she still met me over the course of three weeks to complete the curriculum... She’s worked hard and deserved this chance!"
Sunnie also attended the Vehicle Maintenance 101 workshop offered by Lake City Auto. Thanks to what she learned in that class, she was able to keep her barely running car going until a Rides car became available.
Once a car was ready, Lake City Auto, through its subsidiary, Lake City Preowned, made sure it was a good fit for Sunnie and facilitated the purchase. Their operations manager, Jessica, described the interaction this way:
"True to her name, Sunnie radiated excitement, gratitude, and kindness throughout the entire process. It is immensely fulfilling for us to participate in this program, helping hardworking and truly deserving individuals gain access to reliable transportation, enabling them to contribute meaningfully to our community.”
KTEC students repaired the Nissan Versa, an opportunity to impact not only people like Sunnie but also the lives of the students working on the cars. John with KTEC shared how they are "able to have conversations with the students about the people we're helping, and they really buy in. Some of the students have lived in situations very similar to the ones facing the people buying these cars, and they get committed to helping through their work ."
Sunnie and the other hard-working individuals purchasing vehicles through Rides don’t see this as charity, they see it as an opportunity. They are so grateful to have access to something they can do themselves.
Read the full CDA Press article here. Watch KXLY's coverage of the story in this short video (2 1/2 minutes).