Day of Service Benefits Bikes for Kids

Submitted by Michele Dickey

When some local residents read an article about Bikes for Kids, they saw it as a cause they wanted to help. Because their company, Milone & MacBroom, a civil engineering firm in Chesire, salutes Martin Luther King Day by having all its employees volunteer in various areas, the Essex-based provider of new and refurbished bikes with helmets was just the ticket.

On Martin Luther King Day, 10 employees from Milone & MacBroom (the company’s 130 employees are also located in Branford, Maine, Vermont, Massachusetts and South Carolina) donated their time and even brought with them 10 bikes and a scooter collected from coworkers.

All this was made possible through the Essex Fire Department’s donation of warm garage bays in which to work and the time of fireman John Orr, who brought the original request to the chief and the board. Essex FD even donated some bicycles! Orr spent the whole day on site and brought with him the promise that, if it all works out well, they could make this an annual event. The folks from Milone & MacBroom think this could be a great idea.

Nicolle Burnham spearheaded the idea. She reported, “We do engage in different volunteer activities. On Martin Luther King Day, the whole company is volunteering, with other groups in Meriden, Bristol, and Plainville.

On Monday, 44 bikes and one scooter were refurbished and taken away to be stored until delivery. Dave Fowler, current head of this local group, said many of these were headed to “my Mom’s toolshed!”

Their ultimate destination is probably the in Middletown, where bikes are awarded as incentives for such achievements as perfect attendance or a stand taken against bullying. of Middletown, where Bikes for Kids gets all its parts and helmets to give away with each bike, now provides bike locks at cost to McDonough School.

Another 40-50 bikes will be delivered to Hartford in the spring for a bike rodeo. Fowler has learned, “You never know who’s going to be on the other end of the phone.” They get a lot of requests, but "'need’" is the operative word”; this is the reason the group no longer awards bicycles as prizes for essay contests but rather turns to social services and churches for lists of eligible youngsters and adults, although some individual requests are still filled after being verified.

Some bikes go to homeless individuals. Looking around the garage bay and outside at the array of bikes, some newer than others, I asked if there was ever any jealousy when they are delivered to groups—does a child who wants a red bike, or one with handlebar streamers, have to ”settle” for a streamer-free blue? Fowler says no. “Most are pretty happy to have a set of wheels that turn.” And it’s volunteer events like THIS that help Bikes for Kids keep rolling!

To learn MORE about BFK, go to www.bikes-for-kids.net.