Charlotte car dealer invites homeless to sleep in his lot. He finds them homes, too.
A Charlotte car dealer who invites homeless people to sleep in their cars in his well-lit lot has embarked on helping them find permanent housing, too.
Since the effort began in January, about a dozen families have slept in the lot of Kiplin Automotive Group at 3515 Brookshire Boulevard, general manager James Charles told The Charlotte Observer on Saturday.
People typically pull in at about 7:30 p.m. and leave by 7:30 a.m., as most have jobs, Charles said. They include a veteran, a mother with three children, and mostly young people who have jobs but can’t afford Charlotte rents, he said.
Charles said he expects the nightly number in his lot to climb to about 30 after the Urban Ministry Center’s seasonal Room in the Inn program closes soon. Through Room in the Inn, the center partners with colleges and churches to provide food and shelter for homeless people each Dec. 1-March 31.
People living in cars have jobs, car dealer says
Word of Kiplin’s effort quickly spread, with people dropping off food, knit hats and A Sani-Can toilet, Charles said.
“There was a strong need for this niche market of people staying in their cars,” Charles said, compared with other homeless people staying in shelters and on the street. Charlotte shelters are often full, he said.
Charles’ dealership of used and pre-owned cars has since formed the nonprofit HALO Now, short for Helping And Leading Others Now.
Nonprofit raises money for rent, security deposit
The goal, he said, is to raise money on HALO Now’s GoFundMe page for security deposits and first month’s rent for people to transition from cars to apartments.
Charles said a security deposit and first month’s rent amount to about $2,500 in Charlotte. HALO has raised about $2,300 on GoFundMe to help its first person, he said.
Auto dealership client was living in her car
The idea for letting people sleep in their cars on the Kiplin lot sprouted six years ago when workers went to repossess a car from a client who had stopped her payments, according to the dealer’s Facebook page.
They found the woman sleeping in the car.
“We put her in a hotel until she could find a place but all and I mean all the shelters were full,” Kiplin posted. “That’s when we asked God why are we here. 6 years later we have one piece of the puzzle.”