Dozens of kids from across the South Shore are off and rolling this summer.
Thanks to the United Ways’ Bikes for Kids program, 62 people received a reconditioned bike this year.
Most went to kids between the ages of five and eleven who otherwise may not have had the opportunity to ride.
This year the number handed out were evenly split between boys and girls.
Program coordinator Michael Graves says bike riding is a big part of a child’s life.
“When I grew up everybody had bikes and it just seems to be a simple right of passage for a kid. So anything that we can do at United Way along with our partners, to help facilitate that, then we’ll obviously do that.”
Graves says it’s great to get unused bikes into new hands.
“What’s really cool is that these are bikes that were just sitting around in basements, in the garage, maybe in the barn. They were just doing nothing. So what we’ve done is repurpose them and given the bikes the opportunity to have new adventures with a new bunch of kids.”
The United way has given away over 300 bikes since the program started five years ago.
They’ll be accepting donations of lightly used or even new bikes at Bridgewater Mall at the end of September for next year’s program.
