 WYOMING, MI -- Children in a Wyoming neighborhood pedaled away on new bikes Saturday as the annual Elves & More West Michigan project gave out 1,800 two-wheelers. Families near the Godfrey-Lee school district received the surprise gifts this year. Volunteers set up shop at the Lee Middle and High school buildings off Havana Avenue SW early Saturday, Dec. 19. As part of the project, now in its 11th year, about 300 volunteers helped unload the new bikes from semi-trucks, then helped arriving children and their families make any needed adjustments to the bikes. The bikes were funded this year through 13 corporate donors. Last year, about 1,500 bikes were given out in a Southeast Grand Rapids neighborhood. Related: 'Elves' give away 1,500 bikes to unsuspecting children in Grand Rapids neighborhood Every $65 donated allowed Elves & More to buy one bike and a helmet. Families in the neighborhood were alerted to the giveaway by a last-minute text through the school district as well as fire trucks and police cars rolling through the area with announcements from loudspeakers. Leaders with Elves & More West Michigan choose a different neighborhood each year, with the goal of helping children between 3 and 16 in age. Since the project's inception, nearly 12,000 bikes have been distributed. n Saturday, Juana Hernandez and her three children, including 5-year-old son Karlos, showed up for the giveaway. "I woke them up this morning. I said 'Santa is going to bring you new bikes,'" she said. "They got up all excited." E-mail John Tunison: jtunison@mlive.com and follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/johntunison Comments are closed.
|
Proudly powered by Weebly