Y PARTNERSHIP BENEFITS KIDS IN NEED
Nine-year-old Cally Burt was one of 13 Y kiddos to be gifted a bike last month as part of Fall Creek Farm and Nursery’s manager training.
“I’m so excited,” Cally told a reporter for The Register-Guard at the event. “I’m going to ride around with my friends on the sidewalks and in the woods and take it with us when we go on camping trips.”
The 6- to 10-year-olds who received bikes are enrolled in the YMCA/Eugene 4J BEST Afterschool program at Howard Elementary School. In collaboration with the Y, the BEST program aims to engage youth in academic and enrichment opportunities that foster self-confidence, determination, a joy of learning, and a sense of community.
The bikes were built by 50 managers from Oregon and around the world as part of a team-building exercise during Fall Creek Farm and Nursery’s first international managers meeting.
Fall Creek managers were just as surprised as the Y kids when they discovered the bicycles they’d just spent about half an hour putting together were going to local kids whose families may not have the money to purchase a bike.
Y CEO Brian Steffen said the purpose of the bikes is hard to quantify but they are sure to enhance these children’s lives.
“They now have the opportunity to enjoy being outside, move their bodies, and connect with friends over a lifelong sport that they otherwise might not experience,” he said. “So many kids at this school struggle with confidence, and these kids now have a whole new tool to help them grow."
