Many hands made impactful work recently as funders, partners, and volunteers came together to help YES replace its aging bike fleet with high-quality bikes designed for years of frequent use by young people.
Thank you to the following funders who helped make this equipment purchase a reality: Boston Children’s Hospital, New Belgium, Northeastern Office of City & Community Engagement, and an anonymous donor who generously stepped up to close the gap on the project costs.
To execute the assembly, YES collaborated with Bikes Not Bombs and Life Science Cares, two groups working towards social change for marginalized populations in Boston. Life Science Cares provided the human power in the form of volunteers who assembled the new bikes. Bikes Not Bombs provided physical space, guidance on bike assembly, and volunteer supervision. Volunteers also emptied, cleaned, and reorganized YES’s bike trailer before loading in the brand new bikes.
As a final step of the project – and in line with YES’s core value of environmental sustainability – volunteers helped clean and donate YES’s retired bike fleet to Bikes Not Bombs. The old equipment will be stripped for parts and repurposed.
YES simply would not have been able to undertake this project without financial support from generous donors, contribution of time from volunteers, and expertise from our friends at Bikes Not Bombs. Thank you to everyone who contributed to this labor-intensive effort and much-needed equipment upgrade!
Last year, 95% of youth in the YES Outdoor Adventure biking program had the opportunity to experience or try something new in the outdoors, 81% grew and improved their biking skills, and 76% grew in confidence to face a challenge. With its upgraded bike fleet, this program will continue to thrive and benefit Boston young people for years to come!
Learn more about YES’s Outdoor Adventure Bike program here.
