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The Drive for Life program is set to reach even more youths.
With two young kids and no driver's licence, the boundary of Amy's world - and that of her daughters - went no further than a small nearby park.
That world has now stretched into a more hopeful vision, including uni study and better employment prospects for the 18-year-old, and more contact with other kids for her girls.
The game-changer was adriving instruction program run by the Salvation Army's Oasis Youth Support Network in inner Sydney's Surry Hills, which has helped more than 50 disadvantaged young people like Amy get a licence.
And after the donation of three new vehicles from Skoda through Carsguide.com.au, the Drive for Life program is set to reach even more youth.
Amy is able to attest to what it will mean for them. "I did the Driving for Employment program and it has made a huge difference. It's opened up a lot of opportunities for me and for the girls too," she says.
"With two young girls it was very difficult to get around without a licence. And not having any family to teach me how to drive - or enough money to have driving lessons - made it impossible to get one.
"Everything was hard to do: grocery shopping, taking the girls to the doctor, doing anything at all if it was raining. Now we can do all that -- we go to play centres and family events, and I've just started studying psychology at uni - so it has started my career, hopefully."
Head of Skoda Australia, Matthew Wiesner, said while many of us take a driver's licence for granted, it had become harder for disadvantaged young people to get one.
"With today's mandatory 100-plus hours of driving training - which are important to make sure that young drivers are safe drivers -- it's very difficult for those who don't have a family support structure," Wiesner said.
"So this program is a fantastic opportunity for them, and Skoda's partnership with the program is a way for us to put something back into the community." Director of the Oasis Youth Support Network, Major Robbin Moulds AM said the donation of the three Yetis was more than they had ever hoped for.
"We had asked about the possibility of a single car - even a used one. And now we have not one, but three, brand new ones." Major Moulds said the Yetis would be in strong demand, and would help the program expand.
"Currently we have 75 young people at Oasis on a waiting list wanting to learn how to drive," she said. "But we can now also extend the program out to western Sydney and into Queensland."
In addition to the three vehicles, the partnership with Skoda and Carsguide.com.au will include a volunteer program and promotion of the benefits in the community.




