HOMEWOOD, Ill. — A single father won a life-changing Christmas gift for his family after a devastating year.

Willie Partee went home Saturday with a brand new Chevy Spark.

The 25-year-old was selected as the winner of the 8th Annual Homewood Chevy Cares Car Giveaway Contest.

“I have a dependable car. I have a reliable car and it will get from A to B,” Partee said. “It was like a dream come true.”

Steve Phillipos, the president of Chevrolet of Homewood, said he thinks they picked the right person.

“We believe in miracles here,” Phillipos said.

Partee’s aunt, Natosha Lee, didn’t even tell him she wrote the entry letter.

“I just saw it in a newspaper and I thought this would be some kind of miracle and let me tell you, it is some kind of miracle,” Lee said. “We’ve gone through a lot of hardship this year. He became a single dad unexpectedly. The baby was born and two weeks later the mom passed away.”

Then, Partee lost his job and his car broke down.

He was selected out of 450 entries to win the new car.

“It just means a lot, it just means a lot,” Lee said. “Good gifts come from above.”

But this gift sparked a little joy for Partee.

“Even in your bad times, your dark times, just a little hope can push somebody,” Partee said. “Just a little faith can push somebody. That’s what I live on. That’s what my village, my aunt, taught me. Just have a little faith, you’re going to make it.”

Christmas comes just days before her birthday, but Partee said Deandre’s mother is their guardian angel and she’ll be riding right along with them.

“She will be riding there in that passenger seat, right in that driver’s seat with me in my window,” he said.