Bikers With A Heart
By: Jayne Ann Bugda
Updated: December 3, 2012
The Wyoming Valley Motorcycle Club's 5th Annual Bicycle Giveaway was held Sunday, December 2, at Fireman's Hall in Ashley.
Since its creation in 1998, the Wyoming Valley Motorcycle Club has had the motto: "Bikers with a Heart". The club has always been active with local charities & fundraising events. They have always known that there are many children in our area who unfortunately have little to celebrate during the Holidays. Five years ago, the club decided to start their own fundraiser to do something special for these kids. Being Bikers, they created "Bikes-4-Tykes" !
Every Autumn, our club has a special 'B4T' fundraiser motorcycle ride. They also solicit gifts and donations from many area individuals, groups and businesses. The club uses 100% of the proceeds for buying brand-new bicycles and helmets.
To determine who should get the bikes, the group works with several area youth organizations to identify and contact deserving families.
The Wilkes-Barre Walmart special orders the bicycles and helmets . Since the event's inception, WVMC has purchased over 300 new bicycles.
This year the Wyoming Valley Motorcycle Club worked with the local Salvation Army and the Wyoming Valley Children's Association. From their files, they drew up a list of 69 deserving youngsters, aged 3 to 11.
On Sunday, the kid's families brought them to Ashley's Fireman's Hall, all decked out for the holidays. The Ashley Fire Department donates hall for the day for a Christmas Party.
The children are treated to ice cream, cupcakes, chips and juice . The here comes Santa and Mrs. Claus arriving on Ashley's biggest fire engine, with lights and sirens blazing.
Santa takes his seat next to the tree, and one by one, the children's names are announced. As they visit Santa , club members open the hallway doors and wheel them out a brand new bicycle.
The look on their faces is priceless.
(Information from Wyoming Valley Motorcycle Club)
