Bike drive volunteers brave the cold and wind
GIBSONIA — A 20-degree temperature and a wind chill of 0 couldn’t keep volunteers away from Al’s Bike Drive on Thursday morning, Dec. 5.
Nearly 90 people, some decked out as elves, braved the wintry weather to gather in the parking lot of the Gibsonia Walmart to transfer hundreds of children’s bicycles from storage containers to trucks and trailers.
Then, the procession of vehicles would travel to the Wildwood Country Club in Allison Park to distribute the bikes to representatives of three groups of the Marine Corps Toys for Tots program based in Butler, Springdale and Beaver. The groups will hand out the bikes to children in Allegheny, Butler and Beaver counties between now and Christmas.
Al Todd, the founder of Al’s Bike Drive, was dressed in a blue Santa suit and gave directions to the volunteers through a bullhorn.
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Rick Hill helps load bikes onto the back of a pickup truck in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Ed Spangler unloads bicycles from containers during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Jerry Tulius unloads bicycles from containers during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Volunteers unload bikes from containers in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Steve Salvatore loads bikes into a trailer in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle (12/5/2024)
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Trucks packed with bicycles donated during Al's Bike Drive leave the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Al Todd, organizer of Al's Bike Drive, tests out one of the bicycles donated during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Steve Salvatore loads bikes into a trailer in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Hampton Township Fire Department leads the procession of trucks packed with bicycles donated during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Brynn Bauer, 5, tests out one of the bikes donated during Al's Bike Drive at the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Rick Hill helps load bikes onto the back of a pickup truck in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Ken Ebbert lines up bicycles during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Ed Spangler unloads bicycles from containers during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Donna Eichner, left, and her granddaughter Brynn Bauer, 5, help line up bicycles during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Volunteers unload bikes from containers in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Steve Salvatore loads bikes into a trailer in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Bill Leja helps load bikes onto the back of a pickup truck in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Bill Leja carries children's bikes to be loaded onto the back of pickup truck in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia during Al's Bike Drive on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Donna Eichner, left, and her granddaughter Brynn Bauer, 5, help line up bicycles during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
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Ken Ebbert lines up bicycles during Al's Bike Drive in the parking lot of the Walmart in Gibsonia on Thursday, Dec. 5. Morgan Phillips/Butler Eagle
He said this year’s drive, the 17th, resulted in 658 bicycles, including 15 adaptive bikes for special-needs children built by Variety the Children’s Charity, based in Pine Township, Allegheny County.
“The bicycle drive helps fill an important role for children in the Toys for Tots program,” Todd said. “Big-ticket items must be donated directly to the Marines as they are limited to a $30 maximum on what they can spend on a child directly.”
Al’s Bike Drive buys the bicycles from the Gibsonia Walmart with money raised through email and social media.
“A 26-inch bike costs more than a 12-inch bike,” he said. “But we say ‘$100 buys a bike for a child.’”
The adaptive bikes are custom-built by Variety the Children’s Charity and cost $2,500 per bike, Todd said. He said he got involved with Variety the Children’s Charity “during COVID when the supply chain had dried up and I couldn’t get any bikes.”
Tom Baker, the CEO of the charity, said the adaptive bikes are custom fitted for each recipient.
“Having a bicycle can be inclusive. They can go riding with other siblings. These bikes provide freedom to go riding,” Baker said. In inclement weather, Baker added, the adaptive bikes can be used as a stationary bike to provide a chance to exercise.
Braving Friday’s inclement weather was John Hoffman of Harmony, who was volunteering for the first time.
“I’ve been donating for years,” Hoffman said. “I had a coin collection, silver dollars, and I cashed them in and gave the $640 to Al to buy the special-needs bikes. The special-needs kids, they like to have fun, too.”
Hoffman said Thursday’s cold didn’t bother him. “I’m a retired union carpenter; I used to work in weather like this. And I still go to Steelers games,” he said.
Heath Kaydo of Hopewell, vice president of Al’s Bike Drive for the past 14 years, found the Bumble costume he donned for Thursday’s event provided a little warmth.
“It’s awesome to give gifts to the kids,” Kaydo said. “It’s great to come out, volunteer together, and be able to leave bicycles under the Christmas tree for kids who might not otherwise have one.”
That’s a lot of bikes, according to Machell Krumpe, co-coordinator of the Butler Toys for Tots program. Her group has been working with the bike drive for five years now.
“At 200 bikes a year, that’s a thousand bikes,” she said.
Jennifer Neilen of the Allegheny Valley Marine Corps Detachment 827 said her group has received 5,000 bikes since the drive got started.
“Since the very beginning, we were the original receivers,” she said. “It got so big, he added two more groups.”
Todd said he never set out to start a children’s charity.
“I’m a financial planner,” Todd said.
In 2008, he said, his business group sponsored a luncheon to support the Toys for Tots program. He raised enough money to buy 31 bicycles.
“The next year, someone said ‘Al, are you doing your bike thing again?’ and it grew from there,” Todd said.
“I’ll be honest with you; it’s a lot of work,” Todd said. “But then a young girl who got an adaptive bike came up to me with tears in her eyes and said, ‘Now, I’ll be able to ride with my sister.’”
People can still help Al’s Bike Drive even though the bikes have been distributed.
“We’ll be taking donations up to Christmas,” Todd said.
Learn more or donate at www.alsbikedrive.com.
