Wheels to Work Car Repair Fund

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Executive Summary

Wheels to Work Car Repair Fund is a nonprofit in Nebraska that helps working families keep a safe, running car. A car is how many people get to work, take children to school and reach the doctor, and in our area there is little public transit. When a repair bill arrives that a family cannot pay, a worker can lose a job. We pay partner garages directly for urgent safety and reliability repairs, share the cost with the household on a sliding scale and never hand out cash.

A $900 repair can be a crisis for a household that lives paycheck to paycheck. Families skip repairs, drive unsafe cars, borrow from lenders with high fees or lose their transportation. A small, fair repair program keeps people working and keeps unsafe vehicles off the road.

With this grant we will help about 90 households in Year 1. The average repair is about $950, with the program paying about $780 and the household paying about $175 on a sliding scale. Repairs are capped at $1,500 and done only by partner garages that agree to a fair rate and a 12-month warranty on parts and labor. We do not promise that a repaired car will never need another repair.

Our Year 1 budget is about $246,000, growing to about $274,500 by Year 5. Each year's budget is planned to balance, with a small surplus each year. We have 3 paid staff, supported by volunteers and partner garages.

We are asking the Heartland Community Foundation for $94,000 for our Program Manager and for repair payments to partner garages. The county workforce office, employers, credit unions and donors also give, so this grant is one part of a shared funding plan.

I am Luis Herrera, the Executive Director. The numbers in this proposal are estimates based on the assumptions listed at the end, not promises.

Company Description

Wheels to Work Car Repair Fund is a small, independent nonprofit in Nebraska, organized as a 501(c)(3) public charity. We serve working households across our county and the counties around it, where many people drive long distances to work.

Our mission. To keep working families on the road safely by making urgent car repairs affordable.

What we believe. A repair program should be fair, simple and safe. Households contribute what they can, repairs are chosen for safety and reliability and money goes to garages, not to households. We use two estimates for larger repairs, work only with garages that treat our families well and never push a family to keep a car that is not worth fixing.

What we offer:
- Urgent repair help. Brakes, tires, steering, suspension, exhaust, batteries, belts and similar repairs that make a car safe and reliable for work.
- A sliding-scale co-pay. The household pays a share based on income, and we pay the rest directly to the garage.
- Car care workshops. Short classes on basic checks, oil, tires and how to talk to a mechanic.
- A guide to the next step. If a car is not worth repairing, we explain the options and refer the family to a community lender or a used car program.

Who we serve. Households with a working adult or an adult in job training, with income below a limit the board sets each year, who own an insured, registered car and have a valid license.

What we do not do. We do not give cash to households, pay for cosmetic repairs, pay for repairs on a car that has no insurance or registration, make loans or promise a car will last.

How we are run. A volunteer board of seven governs the organization. I am the Executive Director. The Program Manager reviews requests, works with garages and manages payments. A part-time intake coordinator takes calls and applications.

Where things stand today. We have signed interest letters from eight partner garages, letters of support from the county workforce office, two employers and a credit union, quotes for laptops and equipment and an application form and garage agreement under review by an attorney. (Replace this with where you really are.)

Problem & Opportunity

For many families in our area, a car is not a luxury. Jobs are far from home, and buses are few or nonexistent. A car that breaks down can mean missed shifts, lost wages and eventually a lost job. A repair bill of a few hundred dollars can be too much for a household with no savings.

Families who cannot pay may drive with worn brakes or bald tires, risking an accident. Others borrow from high-cost lenders or put the repair on a credit card with high interest. Some stop driving and lose their job.

Some repair shops are honest and fair, and others are not. People without much experience with cars may not know whether a repair is needed or whether a price is fair, and they may be pressured to agree to work they do not need.

For a small nonprofit, the hard parts are raising repair money, finding garages that give a fair rate, making fair decisions about which repairs to pay for and keeping the fund from being drained by a few expensive cases.

We want to be clear about what we know and do not know. Reliable transportation is closely tied to steady work, and car repair funds are a practical way to help. We will use the most recent local numbers on commuting, households without a reliable car and work hours lost to breakdowns in our final plan. We do not know exactly how many households will need help, so our plan uses a first-year goal and will report what really happens.

Products & Services

Wheels to Work Car Repair Fund will give working families an affordable, honest way to fix a car that keeps them employed.

How it works, step by step:
1. Apply. A household calls or applies online or at a partner site, with proof of income, insurance, registration, license and a work or training letter.
2. Review. The intake coordinator checks that the household meets the rules and explains the program, including the co-pay.
3. Inspect and estimate. The household takes the car to a partner garage for a free inspection and an estimate. For repairs above $500, we ask for a second estimate.
4. Decide. The Program Manager reviews the estimate with the garage, decides which repairs are needed for safety and reliability and checks that the repair makes sense for the age and value of the car.
5. Agree. The household signs an agreement that sets the repair, the co-pay and the warranty.
6. Repair and pay. The garage completes the repair. The household pays its co-pay to us, and we pay the garage the full amount within 15 days.
7. Check. We call the household a week after the repair to confirm it is running well and ask for feedback.
8. Next steps. Households can attend a car care workshop, and we refer households with an older car to options for the future.

Why this approach is strong. Paying garages directly keeps the money in repairs. A co-pay and a cap spread our funds across more households, and a warranty protects the household.

Market Analysis

Who we serve: working households across our county and nearby counties where people depend on a car to reach work, school and health care.

Our primary group is households with a working adult or an adult in job training and income below the limit the board sets each year. Our secondary group is local employers, workforce programs and agencies that refer employees and clients. We will use the most recent local numbers on commuting, vehicles, household income and transit in our final plan.

How we sized our plan. We plan to help about 90 households in Year 1, with an average repair of about $950, the program paying about $780 and the household paying about $175. We grow to about 110 households in Year 2, 130 in Year 3, 150 in Year 4 and about 170 households in Year 5. Our Year 1 budget is about $246,000 and our Year 5 budget is about $274,500.

Demand data. Signed interest letters from eight garages, letters of support from the county workforce office, two employers and a credit union, and calls from job coaches and case managers show a clear need. We do not count on any single referral source.

We do not serve everyone. We refer households that need a different car, a loan or a ride to the right program, and we do not pay for repairs the car is not worth.

Competitive Landscape

Other choices for families, and what makes us different.

- Paying out of pocket. Many families cannot. We help when they cannot and share the cost.
- Credit cards and high-cost loans. They are easy but expensive. We offer a fair, low-cost option.
- Used car lots and buy-here-pay-here lenders. They sell another car, but often at high prices and rates. We keep the family's current car running when that makes sense.
- Charity gifts of cash. Short-term help may be available. We offer a structured program that pays the garage.
- Public transit and ride programs. They help where they exist. We help where they do not.

What makes us different.
- Payments go directly to the garage, never to the household.
- A co-pay that is fair and a cap that spreads funds.
- Partner garages with a fair rate and a 12-month warranty.
- A guide to the next step when a car is not worth fixing.

What we do not claim. We are new. Larger programs have more funds. We plan to earn trust one household and one garage at a time.

Marketing & Sales Strategy

How we will reach the people we serve.

Workforce programs and employers. We will meet job coaches, case managers and human resources staff and give them a simple referral card and a short form.

Churches, schools and community groups. We will post flyers and speak at meetings so families know the program exists.

Garages. We will visit independent garages and invite those that agree to our rate and warranty to join. We will publish the list of partner garages.

Credit unions. We will ask credit unions to refer members who need repairs and to offer fair financing for what we do not cover.

Online and by phone. A simple website and a phone line make it easy to apply. We provide help in English and Spanish.

Donors. We will invite employers, credit unions and individuals to sponsor repairs.

Telling the story. We will share what a repair meant to a household, with permission, in a short newsletter to employers, donors and partners, so they see how a few hundred dollars keeps a person at work.

Cost to the household. The household pays a co-pay on a sliding scale, usually between 10 and 30 percent of the repair, and we cover the rest.

Operations Plan

How the program will be carried out.

Timeline for Year 1:
- Months 1 and 2 (summer): Sign agreements with eight garages, buy equipment, finish the application, agreement and income scale and train staff and volunteers.
- Month 3 (late summer): Open the phone line and application and review the first requests.
- Months 4 to 11: Approve requests as they come, pay garages, call households after repairs and hold a car care workshop each quarter.
- Month 12: Survey households and garages, report to funders and plan Year 2.

Space. Our small office is shared space in a community building. Car care workshops meet in a church hall or a garage's meeting room.

Equipment. We buy about $8,000 of equipment once at the start: three laptops and a secure case-tracking system ($3,600), a tablet and phone for garage visits and photos ($900), a diagnostic reader and tire gauge kit for vehicle check-ins ($1,400) and a printer, scanner and locking file storage ($2,100). Later years replace or add a few items.

Staffing. In Year 1, I serve as Executive Director. The Program Manager, paid $44,000 a year, reviews requests, works with garages and manages payments. A part-time intake coordinator, paid $24,000 a year, takes calls and applications.

Controls. Money goes only to garages, by check or electronic payment, after the work is done and the household confirms. Co-pays are collected by the program and receipted. Estimates are compared, repair costs are capped at $1,500 and no staff member may accept a gift from a garage. Any complaint about a garage is reviewed, and a garage that does poor work is removed from the list.

Privacy. We keep files secure, share information only as needed to complete a repair and tell households how we use their information.

Costs. Repair payments to partner garages are about $86,000 in Year 1, car care workshops and materials about $4,000, insurance and risk coverage about $8,000, outreach and partner garage visits about $5,000 and administration about $10,000. Household co-pays of about $16,000 come in as income and are paid out to garages along with the rest of each repair.

Management & Organization

The people who will carry out the project.

Luis Herrera, Executive Director. Twelve years of nonprofit and workforce work, including six years running a job training program. He oversees the program, partnerships, fundraising and finances. (Replace this paragraph with your own background.)

Program Manager (from Year 1). Reviews requests, works with garages, manages payments and checks quality.

Intake coordinator (part-time, from Year 1). Takes calls and applications and explains the program.

Partner garages. Eight independent garages in Year 1, each under a written agreement.

Board and advisors. Seven volunteer board members, including an auto technician, a credit union manager and a person who has used a repair program, who meet every quarter. An attorney reviews our agreements.

Garage advisory group. Two partner garage owners and a technician meet with us twice a year to suggest changes to the rate, the warranty terms and the list of covered repairs.

Staff pay in this plan is a full year per person: Executive Director $55,000, Program Manager $44,000 and part-time intake coordinator $24,000. Replace them with the pay you can offer where you live.

Milestones Narrative

Our goals for each year and how we will measure them.

- Year 1: Help about 90 households with an average repair of about $950, working with eight partner garages. A balanced budget of about $246,000, with a small surplus of about $8,400. About 3 paid staff.
- Year 2: Help about 110 households and add four partner garages. A balanced budget of about $252,500, with a small surplus of about $8,400. About 3 paid staff.
- Year 3: Help about 130 households and add a second workshop location. A balanced budget of about $259,500, with a small surplus of about $8,500. About 3 paid staff.
- Year 4: Help about 150 households and begin a referral partnership with a credit union for fair financing. A balanced budget of about $266,500, with a small surplus of about $8,000. About 3 paid staff.
- Year 5: Help about 170 households a year and share our agreement and scoring tools with other counties. A balanced budget of about $274,500, with a small surplus of about $8,400. About 3 paid staff.

What we measure:
- Households helped and repairs completed.
- Average repair cost and the household co-pay.
- Households who kept their job or got to work because of the repair.
- Time from approval to completed repair.
- Garage warranty claims and complaints.
- Household and garage feedback.

How we review results. The Program Manager reviews numbers every month. Twice a year, staff and the board review all results and share them with funders and partners. If a garage has complaints or a cost is too high, we meet with the garage and may remove it from the list. Every number in this plan is a goal, and we will report what really happens.

Funding Request

What we are asking for, and how the money will be used. Our request: $94,000 from the Heartland Community Foundation for a Program Manager and repair payments to partner garages, for July 2027 through June 2028.

The request is spread across these budget lines:
- Personnel: Program Manager salary, $44,000.
- Other: Repair payments made directly to partner garages, $50,000 (other funds add $20,000).

Other money in the program. This request is about 56% of our Year 1 grant income. Other grants and the income lines below pay for everything it does not cover.

Year 1 budget: about $246,000, planned to balance with a small surplus (about $8,400 after the yearly wear on equipment). Year 1 money coming in: grants $168,000 (this request plus other grants we are applying for), county workforce and transportation funds $28,000, employers, credit unions and individual donations $34,000, household co-pays toward repairs $16,000. Year 1 costs: executive director $55,000; program manager $44,000; intake coordinator $24,000; repair payments to partner garages about $86,000; car care workshops and materials about $4,000; insurance and risk coverage about $8,000; outreach and partner garage visits about $5,000; administration about $10,000; about $2,600 a year for the wear on equipment.

One-time startup costs. Startup costs of $13,300 are paid once from startup money, not from the yearly budget: $3,600 for three laptops and a secure case-tracking system; $900 for tablet and phone for garage visits and photos; $1,400 for diagnostic reader and tire gauge kit for vehicle check-ins; $2,100 for printer, scanner and locking file storage; $2,500 for attorney review of the garage agreement and household agreement; $1,300 for banners, flyers in two languages and a simple website; $1,500 for background checks and first insurance payment.

How we got our startup number. The Funding Need Calculator in this plan adds the startup costs ($13,300), the cash the program uses before it balances (about $0) and a cash cushion of about $59,000, which is about three months of Year 1 costs. The cash used before it balances and the cushion come to about $59,000. In all, that comes to $72,500. We start with $11,000 of our own savings and $64,000 in startup support from a local community foundation and our board, $75,000 in all, which covers that amount with room to spare.

The next five years. Our budget grows from about $246,000 in Year 1 to about $274,500 in Year 5. Grants are planned at $168,000, $158,500, $149,500, $140,500 and $132,500 in Years 1 to 5. Other income grows: county workforce and transportation funds from $28,000 to $52,000 and employers, credit unions and individual donations from $34,000 to $58,000 and household co-pays toward repairs from $16,000 to $32,000. We add partner garages and a second workshop location as the program grows. Grants fall from about 68% of our income in Year 1 to about 48% in Year 5.

Savings. We plan to keep several months of costs in savings. The lowest year-end balance in the plan is about $67,200, at the end of Year 1. Some grant payments and partner payments arrive after we bill, so we plan for about $9,840 owed to us at the end of Year 1.

After the grant. The county workforce office, employers, credit unions, household co-pays and individual donors grow every year, so grants become a smaller share of our budget. Households share their stories, and sponsors can underwrite a repair by name.

Risks and how we will handle them:
- A garage does poor work. We check each repair, require a warranty and remove garages that do not meet our standards.
- Repair demand is higher than funds. We use a waiting list and a monthly budget.
- A household tries to misuse funds. We pay garages only and require documents.
- Costs rise. We cap repairs and adjust the co-pay scale.
- A grant ends. We keep savings and grow employer, credit union and donor support each year.

If you are just starting. A new organization can begin before it has its own 501(c)(3) status through a fiscal sponsor: an established nonprofit that receives grants for you and passes them to your program, usually for a fee (commonly around 5% to 10% of the grant, sometimes more; ask before you agree). Another way is to start smaller: three partner garages, a small repair fund and a volunteer reviewer, tracked carefully. Strong results from a small start make larger grants easier to win.

Appendix Notes

Documents to attach with this proposal:

- Your IRS 501(c)(3) determination letter, or your fiscal sponsor agreement.
- Your most recent financial statements and your current year budget.
- A list of your board members and what each one does.
- Signed letters of support from the county workforce office, employers and the credit union.
- Your garage agreement and warranty terms.
- Your household application and agreement in English and Spanish.
- Your income scale and co-pay table.
- Your privacy policy and complaint process.
- Quotes for equipment.
- Resumes for your Executive Director and key staff.
If you don't have any of this yet, no worries - let's continue.

The assumptions behind our numbers (change them in the Financials section to match your own):
- Grant Revenue: $168,000 in Year 1, then $158,500, $149,500, $140,500 and $132,500.
- County Workforce and Transportation Funds: $28,000 in Year 1, growing to $52,000.
- Employers, Credit Unions and Individual Donations: $34,000 in Year 1, growing to $58,000.
- Household Co-Pays Toward Repairs: $16,000 in Year 1, growing to $32,000.
- Pay (a full year, per person, including payroll taxes and workers' compensation): executive director $55,000, program manager $44,000, intake coordinator (part-time) $24,000.
- Other yearly costs in Year 1: repair payments to partner garages $86,000, car care workshops and materials $4,000, insurance and risk coverage $8,000, outreach and partner garage visits $5,000, administration $10,000. These grow between 4% and 6% a year.
- Equipment: $8,000 at the start, then $1,000 to $2,000 a year.
- Startup costs: $13,300, paid once from $75,000 in startup money.
- Households helped: about 90 in Year 1, growing to about 170 in Year 5. Household co-pays of about $16,000 in Year 1 are collected by the program and paid out to garages with each repair.
- About 4% of each year's income is still owed to us at year end.
- Tax: none, as a nonprofit.
- Every dollar amount is an estimate. Replace them with your own quotes and real budget.

Startup Costs