December 2, 2009, MEMPHIS. As the holiday season approaches, Shelby Farms Park Conservancy is putting out a call for your old bikes to be recycled and given away to children in need for the third annual Shelby Farms Park Holiday Bike Recycle and Give-away, sponsored by BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee.
Each year, SFPC partners with Revolutions Community Bicycle Shop and YMCA of Memphis and the Mid-South to identify children in need and give them an opportunity to learn about the unique mission of Revolutions and the freedom of having a bicycle and knowing how it works. The selected children attend a very special Revolutions bike recycle workshop for a crash course in bike building, maintenance and repair. The Revolutions team emphasizes the significance of rehabilitating and rebuilding bicycles, along with the power that comes with knowing how to keep your own bike rolling.
"For us," said SFPC Deputy Director Laura Adams, "the real magic happens when the kids inevitably realize that it's so special to have a better-than-new bike built piece by piece from other bikes from the Memphis Community. Every year, we look forward to watching the kids come over the hill after their first trail ride, eager to tell us all about their adventure."
The Revolutions team, along with volunteers from Peddler Bike Shop, Cirque du Velos, Mid-South Trails Association and other bike mechanics and enthusiasts across the region, works to prepare bikes to be given to the children on Saturday, December 19 at Shelby Farms Park. The kids will participate in a mountain bike safety course led by experts before going on a trail ride.
But to make this program a success, SFPC is encouraging the community to participate by donating old, flat, broken, banged up, outgrown bikes to Revolutions to be disassembled and given new life. Bikes can be dropped off at the rack outside the Shelby Farms Visitor Center at 500 North Pine Lake Drive any time during park hours. Bikes can also be dropped off at the Revolutions Community Bicycle shop in the back of First Congregational Church at 1000 South Cooper Street: Sundays: 2pm-5pm, Mondays: 6:30pm-8:30pm or Thursdays: 6:30pm-8:30pm. Call (901) 767-PARK for more information.
Shelby Farms Park Conservancy is a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization whose mission is to give rise to a celebrated 21st century park that defines and shapes a great city. Become a member, volunteer or learn more at www.shelbyfarmspark.org.