For Immediate Release
March 15, 2019

ARLINGTON, Va. – Monday, March 18^th, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Arlington will give a donated car to a husband and wife with two small children at 11 a.m. in the garage entryway at 200 North Glebe Road in Arlington.

Details of event:

When: Monday, March 18th, at 11:00 am
Where: Catholic Diocese of Arlington, 200 North Glebe Road, Arlington
            (Garage entryway)

The recipient of the car is 35-year-old Sabir Amanat, his wife, and two daughters, ages 5 and 3.  They are Pakistani Catholics who escaped religious persecution in April 2018.  “We both worked for an airline in Pakistan at the time, and were fortunate enough to get a visa, so were flew to the United States to save our lives,” he said.  Amanat, who now lives with his wife and children in Sterling with extended family, says their case is pending to be evaluated by an immigration court. In the meantime, he and his wife will apply for work permits next month.  Amanat says he’s grateful for the car.  “I feel so excited. The car will help us daily for taking the children to school, and attending church,” he said.

“It makes me so happy” says Kelly Bingel. She and her husband Thad donated the vehicle to Catholic Charities. “We were at the kitchen table talking about wanting to donate it to charity, and my husband opened up a letter to give to the Bishop’s Lenten Appeal, so we thought it would be a good donation,” she said. Bingel says the vehicle, a Ford Escape 2006, is great for taking kids to afterschool activities.

For more than 20 years, the Catholic Charities’ Car Ministry has been transforming lives by helping low-income families obtain vehicles.  The program accepts donations of both working and non-operational cars.  Catholic Charities gives working cars, along with their titles, to qualified recipients to own. Non-operational cars are sold, and proceeds go to its programs.

This year so far, Catholic Charities’ Car Ministry has donated 37 cars to low-income families. For more information, call Catholic Charities’ Car Ministry at 703-841-3898.

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About Catholic Charities, Catholic Diocese of Arlington

Catholic Charities is the charitable arm of the Catholic Church in the 21 counties and seven cities of the Diocese of Arlington under the leadership of Bishop Michael F. Burbidge. Catholic Charities serves the poor and vulnerable who live in the Diocese, whether they are Catholic or not. Catholic Charities services include food for the hungry, a free medical clinic, transformational housing for men and families, individual and family counseling, emergency financial aid, immigration and refugee services, job training and workforce development, prison ministry and former prisoner re-entry program.

Contact
Angela Pellerano, Director of Media Relations (703)-841-2517 (o) (571)-215-8731 (c) a.pellerano@arlingtondiocese.org