Christmas Bike Build Day December 10th
Merry Christmas!
Ride for Bikes, a 501(c)(3) public charity, is excited to announce our plans to provide 280 children in Southeastern New Mexico with Christmas bikes for the 2016 Christmas season. We are entering into our second decade of building and delivering bikes. We have given out over 3,100 bikes since our start of just 45 bikes in 2005. Bikes have gone to CASA, Grammy’s House, Head Start in Roswell, Hagerman, Carlsbad, Dexter, and Artesia. Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Southeastern New Mexico, Heart’s Desire in Lovington, and the Artesia Kindergartners for the last three years. This year every kindergartener in Artesia will get a brand new 20” bike.
As always we will need many hands and many trailers. It takes between 130 and 150 people to assemble and deliver 280 bikes. So we need you to volunteer to put bikes together and if you have a large covered horse trailer we can use to transport bikes please get with us at info@rideforbikes.com.
The budget this year to successfully accomplish our Christmas bike goal is approximately $20,000. We are asking for your help to meet this objective. We have to make this target, as we don’t want to turn away any children.
We realize that these are hard economic times. The last two years we had to dip into our reserves to make our goals. We can’t do that very often. So if you are unable to donate we totally understand, perhaps coming out to assemble bikes is the way you can help. But if you are fortunate to be able to generously donate we would like you to please do so.
You can donate to the Ride for Bikes Christmas bike program by sending a check or by donating online via credit card at www.rideforbikes.com. While you are on the website, we encourage you to read about our programs and click on the pictures showing volunteers building bikes and the smiles of those children receiving bikes.
Checks should be made out to “Ride for Bikes GAF” and mailed to:
Greater Artesia Foundation
P.O. Box 1344
Artesia, NM 88211-1344
We would also like to invite everyone to join us in assembling the bikes for the children. We will be assembling and delivering the finished bikes at 8 AM on Saturday December 10th at the Artesia Center on North 8th Street. We encourage families, companies, churches, or anyone that wants to be part of a community to join together to do something for the children in our communities. Don’t worry if you haven’t put a bike together. We have jobs for everyone. Please contact us at info@rideforbikes.com to volunteer.
So what can you do to help? That is something we hope you truly think about. We are very happy with all that we do for the children in our community, but we are only able to do it with your help. Please feel free to pass along this letter to those you think would be interested in donating or volunteering.
Thank you,
