Old bikes get new life at Downers Grove Bicycle Club collection event Oct. 19

Old bikes will find a new life when the Downers Grove Bicycle Club hosts its annual used bike collection event on Saturday, Oct. 19.

It will be 9 a.m. to noon in the parking lot of First United Methodist Church at 1032 Maple Ave. in Downers Grove.

Instead of taking up space in the garage or ending up in a landfill, the club encourages area residents to donate their used bicycles, parts, helmets, locks, and bike accessories at the collection event.

Donations will benefit Working Bikes, a Chicago nonprofit organization and bike shop. Working Bikes refurbishes used bikes which may be sold in their Chicago retail warehouse, donated to people in need of transportation in the Chicago area, or sent to partner organizations in Africa or Latin America where bicycles provide life changing transportation.

The Downers Grove Bicycle Club has hosted this annual bike collection event for nine years, but this marks the first time the club has partnered with the First United Methodist Church to hold the collection.

Since 2006 the Downers Grove Bicycle Club has worked to promote bicycling for transportation, recreation, and better health. Through its signature programs and events, the club offers rides for cyclists of all skill levels and deepens member connections through social events. The club promotes safe riding practices and encourages the expansion of cycling infrastructure in Downers Grove. Visit www.downersgrovebicycleclub.org to learn more about the club, bike rides, and membership.

Working Bikes gives donated bicycles new life by redistributing them as tools of empowerment in local and global communities. Since its inception in 1999, the community of Working Bikes volunteers, staff, partners, and supporters have enabled new life for 100,000 bicycles across the globe and tens of thousands here in Chicago.

Over one hundred thousand people have been empowered to access resources and opportunities that otherwise could have been out of reach — reducing waste, lessening pollution, and improving health in the process. Working Bikes, a 501(c)(3) organization, is located in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood.