God’s Garage in Conroe, TX is a Christ-centered non-profit ministry that provides reliable transportation to women in need. The ministry also empowers these women by sharing the good news of Jesus Christ.
“We receive over 200 applications per month of women in need of a vehicle,” Justin Coggins, Executive Director of God’s Garage told CBN’s The PrayerLink.
The mission of the ministry is simple – repair and gift vehicles to struggling single moms, widows and wives of deployed military throughout Conroe and the greater Houston area.
Coggins shared how it all started.
“Our founder was a pastor and he loved tinkering with cars and working on vehicles,” he said. “There happened to be a single mom walking on a very, very busy roadway here in Conroe, Texas and it happened to be in the evening. And he stops by, finds out why she’s walking on this road at this time of day in such heavy traffic.”
“Come to find out the single mom actually had a vehicle. It was in a shop, but she could not afford to get it out. They were able to work on it and get that vehicle fixed and right then and there; and that’s where single moms started to roll into God’s Garage,” Coggins explained.
He says the women in need of their services are looking for ways to better their lives and families.
“It’s hard times, vehicle prices are up,” Coggins said. “The way we meet those needs is by receiving donated vehicles from the public. And those donated vehicles come into our shop and we spend time, hours, money, everything that’s needed to get those vehicles up and running; and then our job is to turn around and give those vehicles away to a much-needed single mom.”
The impact has been life-changing.
“Having these vehicles in a single mom or a widow’s hand brings consistency back to their life,” said Coggins. “It helps get their kids to school on time on a daily basis. It helps them get to the grocery store when they want to get there. It helps them get to their doctor’s appointment. It helps them in multiple ways.”
Ways that are rewarding for all involved.
“Last year we gave away 94 vehicles,” Coggins said. “The year before that, around 95 vehicles, and so every single one of them is heart-moving. It’ll bring you to tears because of the struggle.”
To help with that struggle the ministry also provides life skills training in budgeting, meal planning, single-parenting and job interviewing. Spiritual needs are also addressed through an outreach called “Restore You.”
“We present the Gospel and give every single lady an opportunity to accept Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. We’re seeing 25 to 30% of the ladies accept Jesus Christ for the first time,” Coggins shared.
In the end, it is all part of the mission of restoring lives one ride at a time.
The remainder of this article is available in its entirety at CBN
