Our Story: More Than Just Transportation
Norman Care-A-Vans is a 501(c)(3) non-profit building a community of support and care with unhoused folks in Norman, Oklahoma, one ride at time. Our ultimate goal is not only to get our friends from point A to point B, but also to build a world where everyone can readily take care of each other, no strings attached, no matter what.
We understand our work to be in solidarity with struggles for liberation worldwide, and ourselves grew out of the wave of abolitionist activism in 2020 that brought to a wider audience the necessity of building institutions that center caring for rather than caging folks who are struggling to survive in this world.
In 2020, Brandi Studley created the Social Injustice League of Norman (SILN), which laid the groundwork for our meal delivery program. In May 2023, we officially took this program over from SILN, and we currently deliver 50 meals every Monday through Thursday.
While delivering meals as SILN, our unhoused friends consistently pitched the idea of us giving them rides. Since our unhoused friends know what they need best, these requests sparked the creation of Norman Care-A-Vans. We are honored that our unhoused friends have let us into their lives, trusted us with their stories, and literally helped us build Norman Care-A-Vans.
In February 2022, we began our flagship program that offers free on-demand transportation to unhoused folks in Norman. Since then we have logged around 100,000 miles giving tens of thousands of rides, primarily with our volunteers’ personal vehicles.
In January 2023, we hired our first two part-time drivers, and in April we purchased the first vehicle in our fleet—a hybrid Toyota Sienna. Most recently, in July 2023 we hired a third part-time driver.
2022 Milestones & Highlights
- Awarded our 501(c)(3) status as a public charitable organization
- Received the 2022 City of Norman Humanitarian Award
- Became an official member of the Cleveland County Continuum of Care (CoC)
- Successfully negotiated a mileage reimbursement program from the City of Norman that will benefit all agencies that provide transportation services for the unhoused
Growing Partnerships
Our Drivers
Mike Davison
Jacob Hale
Alan Hatcher
Steve Lett
