80 Bikes Given Away for Thanksgiving Event
WHEELING - Traffic was backed up out of town late last month for a bicycle giveaway event, timed with another Thanksgiving giveaway.
Eighty bikes were distributed from the Free Bike Depot's giveaway event on Nov. 21 at an event which coincided with the Bethlehem Apostolic Temple's annual Thanksgiving Giveaway.
Founder John Warnick said the depot began its mission more than five years ago by donating one bicycle to a homeless man in need, but has grown into a labor of love, with volunteers offering bicycles of all sorts to the depot, as well as their time and money to help fix up those bikes which need a little love before they can be given out.
"It started just me giving out bicycles, because I have a bicycle hobby, and I gave one to a homeless guy who lived in Wetzels Cave," he said. "I spoke at the Centre Wheeling Fellowship Church, and they had an empty basement. They let me renovate the basement into a full-blown bike shop that my son did for an Eagle Scout project."
Warnick said they receive donations of new and old bicycles for distribution, and said it was "empowering" for those able to donate their time to fix them up. Word-of-mouth, he said, is how they operate.
"It's kind of like a mustard-seed thing," he said, referencing a parable from the Bible about how the tiniest seed grows into a tree. "They'll tell people, that's how we get a lot of different donations. We've had different ministries in different parts of West Virginia that have merged with us. We had a guy in Bridgeport (West Virginia) ... who brought down 300 bikes one time and donated them."
Warnick said the Free Bike Depot partnered with Appalachian Outreach to donate a large surplus of childrens' bikes throughout the state.
Another distribution event will be held Saturday, Dec. 19. Those interested in contributing may contact Warnick at 304-281-6085.