As Rodney Sauer trudged 9 miles to work through snow-packed and icy roads during one of the more miserable winters on record, he mostly prayed.

His prayers were answered recently when he received a car from Cars 4 Christmas, an organization that provides vehicles year-round for needy individuals and families. The nonprofit group also operates Cars 4 Heroes, designated for veterans down on their luck.

Sauer, 55, was handed the keys to a 1988 Plymouth Reliant at Hart’s Auto Repair in Liberty March 4.

“I think it’s pretty awesome,” Sauer said. “It’s been a tough winter.”

Sauer had been living in a camper and walking from Liberty to his job as a stocker at a grocery store near Interstate 35 and Chouteau Trafficway. Since he worked the 6 a.m. to 3 p.m. shift, Sauer said he got up at 3:30 a.m. and walked for two hours along frontage and side roads to get to his job.

He said the bus schedule from Liberty to downtown Kansas City didn’t work for him, and it was too difficult to ride a bike through snow- and ice-encrusted streets and try to navigate across busy highways in the dark.

“I didn’t want to lose my job, so I walked,” Sauer said.

While he rarely got a ride to work, Sauer said sometimes a co-worker would give him a lift home.

It was that dedication to work no matter how difficult the circumstances that helped Sauer qualify for a car, said Darren Hart, owner of the auto repair shop that donated its labor to fix the car up for Sauer. Hart said Kevin Elam at Liberty Machine Shop donated all the machine work for the engine and NAPA donated the parts.

Hart said this was the first car he had been involved in repairing for the charity but he planned to do a second one this year.

Having reliable transportation can make the difference between someone being able to hold a job or becoming homeless, said Terry Franz, a former car dealer who started the local giveaway program 15 years ago. He runs the charity in Kansas City, Wichita, Kan., and Omaha, Neb.

“We get about 15,000 applications and give away between 250 and 300 cars per year now,” Franz said. “The cars are mostly donated from the public. We take anything.”

He said even if some cars were not worth fixing, they could still use parts and sell the rest for salvage.

Franz said one of the more unusual donations was a 2005 Jaguar.

“We sold it and were able to get four or five cars to give away,” he said. “Our philosophy is to provide basic transportation with a car that’s mechanically sound.”

FIND OUT MORE

To find out about donating a vehicle or applying for a vehicle, call 913-643-1491 or go to www.cars4christmas.org.

Liberty Editor Angie Anaya Borgedalen can be reached at 781-4941 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it