Recycle-A-Bike, a non-profit bike cooperative based out of The Steelyard in Providence is looking to upgrade their facilities from a bare patch of paving and a trailer to a permanent facility and community bike shop. In order to do so, they need the assistance of the community to raise $15,000 by the end of July in order to build their permanent structure. I recommend visiting the Recycle-A-Bike website, their Kickstarter site and their space at 27 Sims if you have a chance.
If you are unfamiliar with what Recycle-A-Bike does, read on for an introduction from Emily Lindberg, the current director:
Recycle-A-Bike is an incorporated non-profit in Providence, RI that has been based at The Steel Yard for five years. We offer a number of Bike Maintenance courses including a monthly class for refugees in Providence, a monthly open enrollment class, and seasonal youth Earn-A-Bike courses. Our most popular programs, Open Shop and Volunteer Day, occur every week. Open Shop (Tuesdays 6-9 pm) serves community members who wish to fix bikes with a mechanic, and Volunteer Day (Saturdays 12-4) is a forum for RAB volunteers to work in the shop, meet fellow bicyclists, and learn new things. We take donated bikes and parts, and rely on volunteers to restore them to safe riding condition. The bikes are then purchased, earned by volunteers, or donated.We are always excited to introduce new volunteers or teachers to the programWe also recently started a fundraising campaign for the construction of a larger shop space on the Steel Yard property. The space will help us to organize, expand our programs, and greater serve the community. We are in need of funds to buy materials for this structure, and would greatly appreciate any assistance! Donations can be made via a paypal button on our website (www.recycleabike.org) or to our Kickstarter fund by clicking here. Likewise, we are recruiting volunteers to help with construction.