Three members of the armed forces are now driving to work every day, at the wheel of refurbished vehicles that were provided by Murphy’s Autocare of Beavercreek.

“There is a need out there, among our members of the military,” explained Dave Murphy, who along with his wife Jan, spearheads this program. “Ironically, some of these soldiers have some tough circumstances, and don’t have a car, so we fixed that for them.”

The program is one aspect of the 1-800-Charity Cars program, a national organization that provides cars for struggling families.

“We have previously been involved in a program to provide cars for victims of domestic violence,” Murphy continued. “That ended, but at the same time, we began hearing of a need in the military, and we started working with the Miami Valley Military Affairs Association.”

Murphy and his wife, Jan, have owned and operated Murphy’s Autocare on Dayton-Xenia Road in Beavercreek for 18 years. “I started working here when it was a Sohio station in 1974,” Dave said.

“My parents were customers here, that’s how I met Dave,” Jan explained.

The full service shop has eight bays and eight full-time technicians, all ASE-certified.

“We provided three cars in 2011, one to a reservist from Toledo who was riding the bus to Dayton every other weekend for duty,” Murphy said. “We have one Pontiac Montana mini van ready to go right now, and we are hoping to get six more donor cars this year.”

Each donation and all paperwork is handled by 1-800-Charity-Cars, and the donor receives a tax deduction equal to the value of the refurbished car.

The project is really a collaboration of four businesses. “We do all of the labor and repair, Genuine Auto Parts provides all of the parts, Thoma Body Shop on Xenia Ave. will do minor body repair and AAA Miami Valley provides a one-year free membership for each vehicle we provide,” Murphy explained. “When we’re done, the vehicle is mechanically sound, has good tires and brakes, is completely safe and is fully detailed. There’s usually at least $3,000 in parts and labor in each one.”

The recipients of these vehicles have not asked for the car. They are identified by officers and peers, and the program is building steam. “This is not associated with the military in any way, it’s sort of word of mouth, and the Miami Valley Military Affairs Association works with us to identify the recipients,” he said.

Jan Murphy summed the program up in one sentence, “It’s the least we can do, to provide some transportation for the men and women who protect our freedoms every day.”

For more information about the program or to learn about donating a vehicle, you can contact Dave Murphy at (937) 426-2886 or go online to www.murphysautocare.com.

For more about 1-800-Charity Cars, go online to www.800charitycars.com.