The Need

Each year, The Recyclery accepts donations of used bicycles to refurbish and re-donate to individuals in need through our Freecyclery Program. These bikes provide working transportation for people to work, attend school or job training, and access vital services. We also donate bikes for families to gift to their children at the holidays.

We gets lots of bikes donated and do our best to refurbish what we can and salvage the rest.

We strive to re-donate 300 bikes per year. The work is performed by volunteer mechanics and supervised by our shop mechanics. Each bike we re-donate is in tip-top working order. Through this work, our volunteers gain valuable skills and confidence, plus the good vibes that come from doing good work. It’s a great example of how we advance our mission through intersecting program activities.

Each bike overhaul and repair can cost $200 in parts, mechanic labor, and shop time. That’s because we will repair or replace… tires and tubes, cables and cable housing, seats, bar tape or grips, shifters and derailleurs, and pretty much whatever is needed to make an old bike like new. As you can imagine, the bikes leave the shop way better than they come in.

Here, a volunteer explains some of the basics of derailleur operation and repair.

Sponsor-a-Bike helps defray those expenses by the generous contributions of people like you!

Here is how Sponsor-a-Bike Works:

You (or your business, friends group, church, or similar) agree to Sponsor a Bike by making a donation or donation pledge. You can sponsor a complete bike for $200 or help sponsor part of a bike with a donation of whatever amount you can contribute. We are 100% supported by the public, so any gift helps.

  • We apply your donation against the costs of refurbishing a bike.
  • If you sponsor the complete bike ($200), we’ll send you a notification and a photo of the bike you allowed us to refurbish.
  • We will also recognize your sponsorship on our wall and on our website (unless you prefer to keep it private).

And that’s it. Simple, right?

If you are interested to Sponsor a Bike, please contact us or visit our Donation page and make a donation. 100% of your contribution is tax deductible to the extent provided by law.