It’s a red-vehicle day for (un)lucky Bay shopper

Michelle Barnard, a Gqeberha winner in SPAR’s Win A Car competition, celebrates her windfall with work colleagues and SPAR representatives.

A mother in her late fifties was handed the key to a peaceful night’s sleep for the first time in many years when she was gifted a brand-new vehicle in the nick of time.

Her current transport was “just about keeping her on the road” and the decades-long wear and tear had become a constant source of concern.

“I’ve been driving it for years and never thought I was going to get another one,” Michelle Barnard, who lives in Gqeberha, said at the handover of her new wheels on Friday.

“This is just such a blessing. The car is beautiful. I’m almost too scared to get into it.”

She even confessed to having had to turn to a calming tablet before the big reveal as her emotions were threatening to get the best of her.

Barnard shared the moment with many of her colleagues from the truck hire business where she works and they cheered loudly as she stepped into her vehicle for the first time.

Tears flowed at the office when she told them she had won a Hyundai Grand i20 and to have had them present during her “life-changing” moment was “very special”, she said.

But, before she could enjoy the moment, the sceptic in her first had to be convinced not to look a gift horse in the mouth.

When she was notified of her windfall – in a lucky draw no less – the perennially unlucky Barnard was convinced it was a scam.

“Nothing nice like this ever happens to me.”

It took a strong coffee and some sweet talk by Mike De St Pern, owner of KWIKSPAR on First in Walmer, to make her believe that the out-the-box vehicle would be hers for keeps.

“If I can win this, there’s hope for everybody,” an overwhelmed Barnard, who has been a customer for the best part of two decades, said.

She first frequented the store when her children were at nearby Victoria Park High School and continued to do so when she moved from the suburb of Richmond Hill to South End in 2011.

The beaming store owner said it was the first time one of his shoppers had been on the receiving end in the annual national competition.

“What I am really glad about is that our winner is someone from down the road,” De St Pern said.

According to him, it enhanced their reputation as a community store that was always there for its customers.

The competition required people to buy house-brand products while using their loyalty card.

Dressed up in an eye-catching red, the 1.2l will be Barnard’s very first automatic to boot.

And, with a seven-year, 200 000km warranty, she may never need a new car again.