Bike Night - KofC Council Repairs Bikes - given to refugees

This Project is the work of Bishop Flaget Council
One evening each month - except during the winter months - some members of the Bishop Flaget Council No. 13053 of the Knights of Columbus come together for what they call “bike night.”

They gather in the garage at the home of council member Dale Anderson, not to go on bike outings but to repair donated bicycles. The bikes they repair are given by Catholic Charities’ Migration and Refugee Services to refugees the agency serves in Louisville. “They deserve a lot of credit” for their work, said Chris Clements, community resource developer for Catholic Charities.

About a half dozen or so members of the Bishop Flaget Council are involved in the project, and they work on five to eight or more bikes at their monthly gatherings, normally held from April to October, said Dick Scherrer, one of the regular workers who was recently installed as the council’s grand knight.

He said the men clean the bikes and do repairs, such as changing tires and tire tubes and fixing brakes and seats.  Catholic Charities delivers the bikes for the repair work and picks them up when the work is done. Clements said the bikes are donated to Catholic Charities, which distributes the bikes to refugee children and adults.  “There’s nothing like seeing a smile on a child’s face” when receiving a bike, Clements said. And for adults, he said, the bikes can serve as means of transportation to their job or to go on errands to the store.

The Bishop Flaget Council’s bicycle project was born about nine years ago and was the idea of then council member Bill Janes, said Robert Rucinski, a former grand knight who chairs the bike committee. Rucinski said he “inherited” the job of heading the committee when Janes moved to another state.  Originally, Rucinski said, the council collected bikes, made repairs when needed and gave them to Catholic Charities for the refugees. Sometimes, he said, the K of C council would give bikes directly to refugee families.
For several years the council also did repairs on bikes for Wayside Christian Mission, said Rucinski. But most of their work on bike repairs has been for Catholic Charities.
“I”ll pick up bikes from anyone,” Rucinski. “People will say, ‘Bob, I have a bike,’ and I will pick it up. I also have picked up bikes off the street.”  Some bikes cannot be repaired, he said, but parts from them can be used to repair other bikes.
Rucinski said the knights also get help in their project from Bluegrass Bicycle in Crestwood, Ky. He said the store’s owner has over the past several years donated parts and supplies and even given his expertise in repairing bikes.  Both Scherrer and Rucinski said the knights enjoy working on their bike project.  “I like to tinker with things,” Rucinski said. “There is a feeling of accomplishment, that you’re doing something for someone else.”  Clements said Catholic Charities is always in need of bikes for refugee families. He said the current supply is low, with about 30 to 35 bikes in the agency’s inventory.

To donate bicycles, call Chris Clements at 636-9263, ext. 125.

Good indeed is the LORD, whose love endures forever, whose faithfulness lasts through every age.