The holidays came early for children as Nanaimo’s Bikes for Kids program delivered bikes to schools across the school district.
The program sees The Nowik Team mortgage brokers working with Nanaimo RCMP and Coal City Cycles to repair and deliver the bikes, said Greg Nowik, co-organizer.
Students at Bayview Elementary School saw a delivery Wednesday, and Aileen Tuck, child youth, family support worker, said they were overjoyed.
“One of the children who received a bike is being raised by a single dad and the dad personally phoned [Friday] morning to give his praise and thanks,” said Tuck. “He said he hasn’t seen his son that happy in a while. He’s a pretty happy kid, but he was just ecstatic … when that young fellow got his bike, it was like Christmas.”
Tuck said she heard from another single parent that the bike delivery was timely as his son’s bike had broken the week previous.
The Nanaimo Brain Injury Society also contributed to the cause, donating helmets to the children.
Nowik said the community has supported his business for the last 22 years, and the bikes program, which started five years ago, is something the company feels passionate about. Approximately 900 bikes have been delivered since the program started and it’s not only for school kids either, he said.
“We distribute to School District 68, some to School District 69 (Qualicum) and basically, we’ve opened up to Boys and Girls Clubs, anybody who really needs them,” said Nowik. “We’ve done a few refugee families … we’re just donating a bike to an 81-year-old woman who just got her bike stolen.”
For more information, call Mel Huggins at 250-758-5524 ext. 7, or go to www.nowikmortgage.ca/bikes-for-kids-community.
RELATED: Bikes for Kids sees numerous donations following theft
reporter@nanaimobulletin.com
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