I just started something.......
 

I gave away a bike. It was a Schwinn MTB from the early '90s. I picked it up for 15$ back in the summer. We all know that quality rigid MTBs are great bikes; but don't flip worth a flip :lol: But for $15 and a cable; there's an under-employed guy riding a better bike. He was given a free kid's Huffy and could just barely ride it (he is 6' 1") so I swapped him out.

I've got another old MTB that'll go tomorrow.

I'm gonna do this every Christmas and through the year as well. Saving these good old bikes and helping folks too. Some of you have probably been doing it forever; but this was my first. I'm kinda' embarrassed to start so late; but I WILL catch up!

Merry Christmas!

I applaud your efforts. It is a great feeling to help others. I've done it for many years and have seen good results. I normally help 20-30 people with bikes each year.

In addition to working as a part-time bike mechanic, I work as a full time as a minister. As part of my ministry, I fix up bikes and sell them very cheaply (normally $5-10). Normally, the repairs far exceed the amount that I charge. Sometimes I give them away, but not to often. I've found that people respect them better if it cost them something. If its free, they don't take care of them. If you find this to be true, you may want to charge a minimal amount.

Thanks for hopefully being an encouragement to others.

I am a big fan of places like this: http://workingbikes.org/

In L.A. I like this place: http://www.bicyclekitchen.com/

My daughter volunteers here, teaching other women how to "wrench."

I regularly donate to them from my parts drawer.

The power of the bike eextends beyond "mere riding."

Wow eja, thanks for the link. I never knew about that place. I'm still new to all of this and that place will help out a lot since my toolkit is very limited. Again, thanks for sharing !