Project Update 3rd August
Wheels in Action Update Time!
The project has now been running for about 4 months time with 4 of us involved. Joe Henry and Stephen Moffit have also helped us to repair old bikes in the workshop.
The committee are:
- Chairman - Andrew Rooke
- Treasurer - Maurice Ruddock
- Secretary - Brendan McCartan
- Committee member - Antje Otto
What’s the project about?
We are collecting old bikes and parts of bikes from council refuse/recycling sites and also from private donations. We have distributed posters about the project around bike shops and leisure centres throughout N Ireland. We bring these bikes to a workshop out the Newtownards Road and fix them up one night per week. The bikes will go to schools, orphanages, aid workers and aid projects in Africa and we will send the bikes out through existing charities.
We are communicating with several local charities who work in Africa and distributing the repaired bikes through these charities.
Who will use the bikes?
This depends on the charity involved but they will range from aid workers, local schoolchildren, orphanages, service providers such as rural health services etc
How long will the project run?
Our intention is that the project will run for a number of years and will grow bigger through time as we link up with other aid organisations. It has proved to be a relatively slow process collecting and repairing these bikes with a small team so we will be looking for more volunteers. We also plan to involve local prisons and train teams of prisoners to work on the bikes. This work in the prisons could be used a means of obtaining NVQ qualifications for the prisoners involved.
What have you achieved so far?
In 4 months we have repaired about 50 bikes, sometimes cannibalising bits of several bikes to make up a good one. We have another 30 or so childrens bikes that need very little work so these will be ready to go soon.
The first 35 bikes went off in a container through Elim International, Newtownards. According to Pastor Ray Cotter these bikes will be used mainly by aid workers in Malawi.
How can you help?
Donate old bikes or parts of bikes
Give a donation for the purchase of spares such as tubes, cables, chains, or
Come and help out in the workshop on Wed nights
Contact us:
- Maurice.ruddock1@btinternet.com
- aerooke@aol.co.uk
- antje@downdistrictvb.org
- Brendan.mccartan@dardni.gov.uk