CFNA, B-Works & Earn-a-Bike
/“Thomas, Delance… Pastor Stanish is here...are you ready to go,” shouted Mauwa to her brothers when I arrived at their door on a Saturday morning in June. I had come to pick up the kids for their Earn-a-Bike program at B-WORKS, a bicycle company in the Soulard area that blesses kids with bikes and computers as part of their service to the community.
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Organized by CFNA Community Engagement Associate, Mrs. Amy Zeigler, enrollment in the program meant the kids would attend a two-hour session every Saturday morning continuously for six weeks. At the end, they were to earn their own bikes, having learned how to operate, ride and maintain them. The students’ parents were entirely supportive of this, as the bikes would be a welcome addition to each refugee family’s meager resources.
After weeks of classes, the excitement was palpable on July 15th when the first group of 11 CFNA kids graduated from their B-WORKS program and earned their chosen bikes, helmets and bike locks. Lead B-WORKS staff member, Mrs. Evie, and her staff worked hard not only to assure the kids were well prepared to take care of the bikes, but also well motivated to bike for exercise and recreational activity.
New American beneficiary Landry noted – “this is such a good program…we got good bikes and helmets and learned how to ride and take care of them. It was tough coming for six Saturdays during school break, but now I understand that working for our reward is so satisfying. We also have to be patient. Thank you for teaching us this.”
Appreciation for the program was expressed not only by the New Americans but also by the B-WORKS staff. Evie noted – “it is so nice to see B-WORKS impacting our city neighborhoods and communities for whom public transportation is a problem. Your kids from Congo, Uganda and Sudan, will no doubt put these bikes to good use as they get around their neighborhoods and make shopping trips to stores more safely and easily. It was such a joy seeing the smiles and engagement of these kids. Thank you for partnering with us.”
CFNA thanks B-WORKS and its dedicated staff for supporting CFNA with this highly beneficial program. Our special thanks also to CFNA staff, Mrs. Amy, for organizing this engagement, and CFNA Interns, Michael and Charles, for driving the kids to and from classes. Our prayer is that this Earn-a-Bike program would not only teach our New American kids valuable life skills, but also encourage them to be caring and sharing among their neighbors, as Jesus teaches in the second Great Commandment, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”
Pastor Stanish Stanley
Executive Director, CFNA
