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This past weekend, Second Chance Cars was honored to receive the Climate for Freedom Award, presented at the Concord Public Library by the Concord-Carlisle Human Rights Council. The award recognizes organizations that advance human rights, environmental responsibility, and community empowerment, and we are incredibly grateful to be this year’s recipient.

Dan Holin, SCC’s Executive Director, delivered a 30-minute presentation that brought the audience through the heart of our work. He shared the stories behind our cars, explained the unique partnerships that make our model possible, and highlighted the real world impact reliable transportation creates for low income workers. At the end of the presentation the room came to their feet expressing their support for our mission. Many guests stayed afterward to talk, ask questions, and connect with our team. 

A dependable car doesn’t just shorten a commute, it opens the door to higher-paying jobs, safer travel, access to childcare, consistent healthcare, and the ability to support one’s family with dignity. Every car we award ripples out into a lifetime of benefits, and events like this remind us how powerful that ripple truly is.

We’re grateful to the Concord Carlisle Human Rights Council for recognizing our mission and providing amazing pastries and tea for all guests, to the Concord Public Library for hosting such a welcoming event, and to everyone who came out to support us. The afternoon was full of heartfelt conversations, shared stories, and a sense of momentum that will carry us forward as we continue to grow.

Thank you to our donors, our school partners, our volunteers, our referring nonprofit partners, and the incredible community that makes Second Chance Cars possible. This award belongs to all of you, too.

Here’s to many more miles of freedom, opportunity, and second chances ahead.

Let’s get to work.

Driving Opportunity, Changing Lives

At Second Chance Cars, our mission is simple but powerful: to help hardworking people get to work by putting them in great, affordable cars. For our recipients, a set of car keys is more than transportation; it’s the start of a new chapter filled with independence, stability, and opportunity.

In 2024, we took that mission even further, awarding 44 cars, a 25% increase from 2023. Behind each car is a person whose life changed dramatically once the barriers of unreliable transportation were lifted.

From Commutes to Careers: Real Impact in Motion

Many of our recipients spend over four hours a day commuting by bus or train, sometimes even sleeping in stations just to make it to work on time.

Who We Serve:

• 45% Veterans
• 24% Returning citizens
• 31% Single parents, refugees, and people in recovery
  (Many recipients fit multiple categories.)

Once they receive a car, everything changes.

Recipients in 2024 saw:

• 88% increase in work hours (from ~19.8 to ~37.4 hours/week)
  
• 75% increase in hourly pay (from ~$13.75 to ~$24.09/hr)
  
• 123% increase in annual income (from ~$22K to ~$49K/year)
  

These numbers reflect something profound: access to reliable transportation transforms lives. It means a parent can work a full shift and still make it home for dinner. It means a veteran can accept a new job opportunity without worrying about missing the last train home.

Economic Ripple Effects: Building Stability and Equity

Beyond income growth, owning a car creates ripple effects throughout our recipients’ lives:

• Improved financial health: The average SCC recipient begins with a credit score of just 521, yet nearly all pay off their car loans on time, rebuilding credit and unlocking new financial opportunities.
  
• Housing security: 38% of housing-insecure recipients move into permanent housing within 12 months of getting a car.
  
• Wealth creation: By paying only $900 for a $6,000 vehicle, recipients see a remarkable 670% return on investment, a rare opportunity to build equity while gaining mobility.
  

The Power of Partnerships

Our network of 10 nonprofit partners and 10 vocational schools makes this impact possible.

Nonprofit Partners:

● Community Resources for Justice 

● Gavin Foundation 

● Jewish Vocational Services 

● St. Vincent de Paul/ Concord Carlisle 

● Thrive Communities 

● US Courts 

● Veterans Affairs (3 sites) 

● Veterans, Inc. 

● Volunteers of America, MA 

● Women’s Money Matters 

Vocational School Partners:

● Essex North Shore Technical School 

● Greater Lawrence Technical School 

● Greater Lowell Technical School 

● Medford Vocational High School 

● Minuteman Career and Technical School 

● Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical School 

● Northeast Metro Tech 

● Shawsheen Technical High School 

● Somerville High School 

● Worcester Technical High School 

The Road Ahead

With donations, partnerships, and outcomes all accelerating, SCC is driving measurable economic change.

Each car isn’t just a vehicle, it’s a catalyst for higher income, stable housing, and renewed independence.

Donate a car. Fund a future.
secondchancecars.org

Amica Insurance and Second Chance Cars (SCC) are partnering to build automobile collision students’ skills and help hard-working people in need get to work!

Amica Insurance will donate vehicles to SCC for collision students to work on that meet the specific educational requirements of participating vocational schools. Refurbished vehicles will then be awarded at the schools to veterans, returning citizens, single mothers, and other qualified participants approved by SCC so they can get, keep, and grow a living wage job.

Amica unveiled the first car selected for our program at our Vocational School Dinner: a 2010 Toyota Corolla! This car will be transferred to one of our partner schools for refurbishment. We’re excited to see the transformative impact it will have on the life of its recipient.

Close to 50 attendees representing almost every one of our 10 partner schools came to North East Metro Tech for our annual Vocational School Dinner on Thursday night!

This dinner allows us to reconnect with the partners that enable us to carry out our mission, celebrate our accomplishments, and brainstorm ways to deepen SCC’s ability to give back to our local community!

Pictured above is NEMT Senior Luis, receiving the SCC Student Employment Fund Award from his instructor, Bob MacGregor. Also attending were representatives from Amica Insurance and the Village Automotive Group.

It was a great evening–here is a link to a slide show that captures some of the evening’s highlights. Thanks SCC intern Michael Boyd for the great photographs!

Our numerous and diverse partners convene and support one another in what we call our Community of Goodness, aka “the CoG”. The CoG was on full display in a Channel 5 news story starring single mom Pharana and her son Samuel, Minuteman High School and Women’s Money Matters. Thanks also to CoG members car donor Julie Kiernan, our zero interest bank loan provider Metro Credit Union and Brian Waldner, Pharana’s volunteer financial counselor. https://www.wcvb.com/article/students-fix-up-car-for-single-mom-minuteman-high-lexington-massachusetts/46793831

Second Chance Cars is launching a partnership with the Village Automotive Group!  Village’s owner Ray Ciccolo has generously offered to supply us with a steady flow of used car donations from his dealerships so we can help get more hard-working Massachusetts residents to work.  Here is a clip of Meghan, who was referred to us by our partners at Women’s Money Matters, getting a gorgeous 2005 Toyota Camry donated by Honda Village.