Bike Kitchen
Bicycle kitchens provide low- or no-cost instruction in bicycle mechanics and offer educational workshops to fill community needs and to promote cycling in the greater public.
In January 2012, the NRVBA is kicking off The Bike Kitchen in Christiansburg, through a partnership with the Virginia Tech Center for Student Engagement and Community Partnerships and the Town of Christiansburg.
The program will offer low-cost and free services such as bicycle recycling, repairs and education with a focus on serving economically-challenged members and youth of the New River Valley.
Who
Approximately 19% of the population in the NRV lives below the poverty line. Anyone receiving social benefits will be eligible for participation.
Why
Transportation is a key building block for self-sufficiency, allowing for access to employment, housing, food, child care, and health care.
How
Through donations and community volunteers, we’ll provide a bike, helmet, lights and lock for a nominal fee.
How You Can Help
The Town of Christiansburg is generously hosting the Bike Kitchen at the Recreation Center. However, we have a long ways to go to make the space functional.
We need…DONATIONS
We need to upgrade the volunteer work area to provide lighting, insulation and heating/cooling. We also need to build and install the infrastructure for storing donated bikes/parts and for supplies. We have to put together essentially a bike shop with stands and tools, too. As a fledgling program, we are fund-raising for the start-up costs. If you would like to help us, please send your tax-deductible contribution to the Bike Kitchen c/o the NRVBA or use the Donate button below.
We need…VOLUNTEERS
Boy! We have a lot of work ahead of us. We have to build shelves, storage bins, tool boards, and bike stands. We need to train volunteers on how to rebuild bicycles. We need organizers, artists, accountants, writers, League instructors and the list goes on… If you have a skill set that we could use, please contact us and we’ll put you to work! If interested, contact Matt Pollmann.
