The Club PUBlication 08/12/2024

​Stranger gives car to arson victim

By SYDNEY PAGE Washington Post

​Carla Bannister was startled awake at 4:30 a.m. by police knocking on her front door. They told her that her car was on fire.

"I was terrified. I was discombobulated," said Bannister, 38, who lives in Cincinnati with her 4-year-old twin daughters.

Surveillance footage from her apartment building showed that someone intentionally torched her 2007 Chevrolet Traverse in the parking lot on the morning of July 9.

"This is definitely not a common thing that occurs in our area," said Nicco Gumino, a detective with the Woodlawn Police Department who is working on the case.

"You can see him lighting something on fire, throwing it into the vehicle, and it just ignited," Gumino said.

The arson incident is still under investigation. Bannister said she has no idea who targeted her car or why someone would do this to her.
"I'm not a mean person or an evil person, so I don't have anybody that I would suspect that would do this to me," said Bannister, who is a manager at a local business.

Bannister was worried about what she would do without a car. She has car insurance, but not full coverage. Her insurance company is assessing the damage.

In the meantime, Bannister had no way of driving her daughters to day care or getting herself to work.

"I was overwhelmed and just at a loss," she said.

Then a total stranger showed up with a stunning offer: Jim Davenport wanted to give Bannister his old vehicle.

"She needed the car more than I did," said Davenport, 67.

Davenport — who bought a new car for himself last December — saw a TV news report about Bannister's car and was disgusted by what happened to her.

"Everything in life comes full circle, and this guy will get what's coming to him," he said. "It's just a matter of time."

Aside from some dents and dings in his old vehicle, "it's a great running car," he said.

"I felt bad for what happened to her," said Davenport, who works as a security guard. "I figured, why not bless her with a car?"

He went to the police station in an effort to track her down, and officials contacted Bannister to let her know that someone wanted to give her their old car.

"I was in awe," Bannister said. "There are good people in the world."
Davenport met Bannister at the police station July 12 to give her the car.

"He handed me the keys and told me where to go to get the title," said Bannister, who requested that the make of the vehicle not be disclosed because she is concerned about someone targeting her again.

After such a frightening event, Bannister said, meeting Davenport helped restore her faith in humanity.

"He's a very nice man, a very genuine-hearted person," she said.

Davenport has esophageal cancer, which has spread to his liver.

"I don't know how much time I'm going to be in this world," Davenport said, noting that he has another old vehicle that he also intends to give to a person in need. "I want to bless somebody else with another car."
He said he was glad to be able to help Bannister during a difficult time.