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Many high school shop classes have a community service component. But I think at my school we limited ourselves to building birdhouses for the local park. Not the students at Louisa County High School in Mineral, Virginia. These resourceful teens fully refurbished a car. Then they gave it to a single mom in their community who needed wheels.

LCHS Junior, Conner Wilbon, gave CBS 19 News the rundown: “We did the tires, the TPS sensor, the exhaust and the AC hose and everything, we just did that because we love giving back to our community here in Louisa. We just love giving back.”

The gift’s recipient was Michelle Mendez, a local mom of six who needed transportation. She admitted, “It’s been hard as a single mom,” and she called the car a “blessing.”

The Mineral fire station in Louisa County Virginia.
Mineral, Virginia | Wikimedia Commons

Mendez said of the students, “I hope they are happy about what they have done, and grateful that it is going to someone that is really going to appreciate it.”

There were several other good samaritans involved in the deed: The Rappahannock Electric Cooperative donated the cash that made the gift possible. And a nonprofit called Giving Words, which specializes in transportation for single moms, lined up the whole thing.

“It warms my heart honestly, that she got the car, it just made me feel great, honestly,” Wilbon said.

See the gift for yourself in the video below:

Related Hands of the Carpenter Charity Gives Cars to Single Mothers in Need

Hands of the Carpenter Charity Gives Cars to Single Mothers in Need

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Henry Cesari

Henry Cesari joined MotorBiscuit in 2021 and brings his deep interest in vintage cars, trucks, and motorcycles to the site. Having restored his first classic car at just 16 years old, Henry has wrenched on everything from overland campers to Japanese motorcycles and even pre-war Bugattis. Henry is also an avid attendee at local car shows and genuinely enjoys connecting with fellow auto enthusiasts.

Henry earned a Bachelor’s in Anthropology and English from the University of Vermont. He has since incorporated his love of the written word with his admiration of classic cars. While Henry is interested in vintage cars, he believes the golden age of cars is yet to come. He is confident journalists will play an important role in this revolution by exposing the industry as it is now and envisioning its possible future.