IMPACT
in Rapid City
Your Generosity in Action
Thanks to your support, United Way of the Black Hills is proud to share real stories — told in the words of our partners — that show how your generosity is making a difference every day.
OneHeart Transportation Program
Can a ride service give a person confidence? Dignity? Can it build trust? Even change a life?
According to Shaila, it can, and it has.
“Before I came to OneHeart, I lost a job because I was late all the time,” Shaila said. “I didn’t have a license and was trying to follow the law and not drive. I lost that job because I was always 20 minutes late, 30 minutes late – because I was waiting for a ride.”
The situation took a toll on Shaila’s employment status and other aspects of her life. “It started wearing down my spirit,” she said. “It was embarrassing.” And expensive. “I spent so much money on Lyft,” she added. “It took all my money just to go to work.”
Shaila enrolled at OneHeart on Dec. 29, 2022. She calls it an “important day” in her life, and for the next 20 months, she relied on OneHeart’s Transportation Program – with program coordinator Morris Brewer, Jr. behind the wheel – nearly every day. “It was the first time I could trust someone to get me anywhere on time,” she said.
Shaila praises Morris’s punctuality and communication skills, and she says he’s taught her the importance of those life skills as well, which has helped to build up her confidence. “It’s more than just a ride,” Shaila said. “It helped me actually get things done, make it to work, and get there on time… The Transportation Program has given me dignity.”
The program not only made it possible for Shaila to keep a job but also to get promoted and get a raise. She credits the ride service with helping to reunite her family as well. “I wouldn’t have even gotten my kid back from DSS (Department of Social Services) if it weren’t for transportation,” she explained. “Because I had transportation, I could get him to daycare and get to work.”
Her kids have benefited in numerous ways. Shaila said they’ve rarely missed a day of school since moving to OneHeart. “When Morris drove them, they were on time every day, and he picked them up,” she said. “That opened up our ability to get to work and get our business started. It opened up hours of time so we could work longer.”
Shaila obtained a valid driver’s license in August 2024. Even that feat, she acknowledges, might not have happened if not for the many rides and moral support she received from Morris and OneHeart. “I don’t know if I would have been able to get my license if I wouldn’t have had this program to get me going in the right direction,” she said.
And she is going in the right direction – with a valid license, a vehicle of her own, and her family along for the ride. “The OneHeart Transportation Program has been life changing,” Shaila said. “It really has.”
Thanks to generous donors like you, United Way of the Black Hills is able to make stories like this possible!