Toronto's
Friends of 2Wheels, a not-for-profit, volunteer-run group that recycles and repairs used bikes then gives them to those in need, was featured this week in
BikeRadar magazine.
In the article, founder Mihály Felbert tells BikeRadar he noticed similar organizations were repairing bikes then shipping them to places such as Africa and Latin America. Additional charities also wanted cash in addition to donations. Without undermining the value of supplying bicycles to developing countries, Felbert says he saw an opportunity to give back to those within his own city of Toronto to help them on the path to a better life.
"In Toronto there are 13 sectors of the city that are poverty stricken, many are emigrants, new to Canada," Felbert says in the article. "We should help those at our front door before extending limited resources abroad, unless it’s a national state."
Friends of 2Wheels is based near the former C.C.M. Weston Factory, the facility that manufactured the majority of bicycles made in Canada from 1917 to 1983. It's also where Felbert grew up and spent much of his youth bin diving for old bicycle parts and making homemade bikes with his friends.
That experience has helped him in the repair business. Funding Friends of 2Wheels largely depends on restoring vintage bikes and selling them to front the costs of new bike parts, equipment and tools. Felbert was inspired to start the organization when he saw a rusty old bike at the side of the road one day.
"That’s when it hit me, being green-minded and grassroots-motivated to help people in need,” Felbert says. "The charitable core in me spring into gear."
Read the full article
here.
Original Source: BikeRadar