Vadel Gray didn’t expect to drive home from work Wednesday.
He’ll do so in a white 2015 Mazda 3, given to him as a surprise at Dunwoody Elementary School’s annual Spirit Night event, held at the Chick-Fil-A at Perimeter Pointe shopping center.
“I can’t stop looking at it,” the 44-year-old said, surrounded by schoolchildren, parents and cameras capturing the moment. “I’m riding tonight!”
Gray, a 20-year DeKalb County School District custodian, loaned his car, a 1989 Chevy Celebrity, last summer to be used in the movie “Miracles from Heaven,” by Queen Latifah’s character, Angela. Gray’s car caught the eye of the film crew. It was more than 25 years old and had some visible wear. Queen Latifah’s character, they said, needed a car that matched her life.
Gray totaled the car this past spring.
“I was following too close to someone,” he said. “Took my eyes off the road, smashed into someone else. Next thing I knew, my whole front end was dented up.”
Since then, he’s been schlepping back and forth up Mount Vernon from the school, on Womack Road, to the bus stop, near the Chick-Fil-A.
“All I was thinking about was getting past this day, walking up that hill about 15-20 minutes, getting sweated up like I am right now,” he said, pointing to the sweat marks starting to form on his gray t-shirt. “And thinking about when the next bus was going to come.”
Children crowded around as Gray got into the car, commenting that they could get a whiff of its “new car smell” even from several feet away. Some cautioned him not to eat in the new car, and to use odor-eliminating sprays to keep it smelling fresh.
Dunwoody Elementary Principal Jennifer Sanders said the car was a secret she’d been keeping more than a month, after the folks from online auto retailer Carvana got wind of Gray’s story.
“Mr. Gray is the kind of person who does exude those characteristics of someone who says: ‘You know what, just give me a break in life and I know what to do next,’ ” she said. “He shows that at school and everything he does. He’s personable, he does his job.
“Sometimes, I think everybody needs a break.”
Ryan Keaton, Carvana’s co-founder, said it was a no-brainer to help someone like Gray, known as someone who gives his all to help the students and faculty at his school.
“We heard about his story and thought he was well-deserving,” Keaton said Wednesday after helping present Gray with the new car.
Gray was standing near the car, keys in hand, when someone asked where he’d go first.
“I’m riding,” he said. “I’m going home and showing off.”
“Be careful,” a man shouted back.
Gray replied: “That, too!”
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