Group needs help refurbishing 350 bikes for metro Detroit kids — and deadline is looming

Frank Witsil , Mandi Wright | Detroit Free Press

Show Caption Hide Caption FreeBikes4Kidz needs last minute volunteers FreeBikes4Kidz in Detroit needs help now finishing the prep of 350 bikes for kids this holiday. fb4kdetroit.org/volunteer

Cycling in metro Detroit has been on a roll — and so is a new nonprofit that plans to give away thousands of bikes to kids just before Christmas.

Free Bikes 4 Kidz-Detroit has the bikes, more than 2,000 of them, but it still needs volunteers to finish refurbishing about 350 of them by Dec. 15.

"We're down to our last days before we give the bikes away," the organization's executive director, Bob Barnes, said. "So what we're really focused on is mechanics, volunteers that have mechanic skills, bike skills, and the ability to take a bike that's almost ready to go and do those last few tweaks on it."

And it's not the only group giving away bikes to metro Detroit kids this year.

In the past few years, Detroit has given rise to organized weekly and annual rides through town, new pathways and lanes to keep cyclists safe, bicycle manufacturing and assembly employing workers, and nonprofit groups seeking to inspire youth.

Free Bikes 4 Kidz-Detroit, which started last year, is a local chapter of a national organization. In its first year, the organization was able to give away more than 1,000 bikes and raise about $40,000.

At the last giveaway, a mother who agreed to share her experience in an emotional video that was posted on YouTube said she was overjoyed that the organization could offer her young boy a bicycle.

"He's never ridden a bike before," she said, starting to cry. "He actually has no idea what to do on it."

"But," the mom added, bursting into a big smile and wiping away the tear, "he's going to figure it out in a couple of minutes."

This year, Barnes said, the group plans to give away the bikes to kids mostly in Detroit who have been identified by other Detroit nonprofits, schools, churches and other community groups.

Many of the bikes were collected this fall at Henry Ford Medical Centers — which is a Free Bikes 4 Kidz-Detroit supporter — in Detroit, Livonia, Grosse Pointe, Sterling Heights, Plymouth, West Bloomfield and other cities.

Barnes, a teacher and avid cyclist who started the group, said he wants children who have never had a bike to experience the thrill of bike ownership, and he hopes his group will help youngsters get, and stay, physically fit.

Wednesday evening, another nonprofit organization, Variety: the Children's Charity, gave away new silver, red and blue bikes to 150 metro Detroit kids at a holiday shindig at the Southfield Pavilion with the Detroit Tigers mascot, Paws, and Santa.

The bikes also came with a helmet, lock and toy.

"So many people equate having a bike with a happy childhood memory," said Michelle Murphy, Variety's executive director. "They know that getting out and riding leaves them with this independent ability to make decisions about going where they want to go."

Getting a bike is a rite of passage, she said.

It's a sign of growing up. It's freedom, independence and adventure.

But, Murphy said, too often today's kids are cooped up inside, looking at a screen.

"We believe," she said, "every kid should have a bike — and get out and have that happy memory."

Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com.

How to help

Free Bikes 4 Kidz-Detroit aims to give collect, refurbish and give away thousands of bikes to kids who don't have one. To donate, volunteer and get more information, go to www.fb4kdetroit.org. Variety: the Children's Charity Detroit can be reached at variety-detroit.com.