Bicycles are a childhood staple — and this man is helping to make children’s dreams come true by gifting them refurbished bicycles and enriching the community around him
Shawn Ortolano, a father in Staten Island, New York was spending time with his young son and son’s friend when the group decided they wanted to go bike riding. Solemnly, his son’s friend mentioned that he didn’t have a bike to ride. Shawn recalled, “I had an extra bike and I gave him the bike. He was so happy and I instantly wanted to do it again.”
The young boy was so thrilled with his “new” bike that Shawn wanted to help other children experience that same kind of happiness. Shawn reached out to his network of friends and other parents, in hopes that they could donate their out of commission, unused, and outgrown bicycles. Shawn was pleasantly surprised by the number of bicycles that came his way.
Even if the bikes aren’t in pristine condition, Shawn will dedicate his time and energy to reconstructing them. “I’ve got a lot of friends who work for the Sanitation Department,” Shawn stated, “they’ll take bikes that are being thrown out and they’ll give them to me. Even if I wasn’t to use the entire bike, I could put the tires on another bike.”
Shawn changes torn bike seats, replaces deflated tires, and even rebuilds bike frames if needed. He proudly says his hard work is worth it when he sees the ear-to-ear smiles on the children’s faces, as they choose their perfect bike.
In an effort to expand his impact, Shawn established an organization, ‘Spokes of Hope,’ in an effort to donate refurbished bicycles to children and lower income families who can’t afford their own.
“We find children that don’t have bikes and we give them bikes,” Shawn simply stated.
Spokes of Hope is dependent on the donations of those in the community. This allows for bicycles that would be unused, tossed, or set aside, to go to good use for another child.
Shawn admits that there is no better feeling than seeing the smiles on the children’s faces as they ride away in their new bicycles. Through Spokes of Hope, Shawn has enriched the lives of numerous children and has become a leading example of what it means to be a positive and impactful member of his community.
Since the program’s initiation just last year, Spokes of Hope has gifted over 125 bikes to children in the local community.
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