Eastman Immigrant Services (EIS) is shifting into gear as they prepare for their Settlement Workers in Schools Summer Bike program.
Olesja Schwabauer, EIS’s program director, says the new initiative is aimed at newcomer children aged 10 to 13 from low-income families who don’t have access to a bicycle.
"We are running this program thanks to the Canadian Tire Jumpstart program that we applied for, who provided us with grant money to purchase bikes and helmets," she says. "With that money, we are able to buy 20 bikes for kids, so that's amazing."
Participants will be able to take their bike, and helmet, home with them.
The week-long program runs from June 14 to 18, with daily two-hour sessions at the Steinbach Regional Secondary School bus loop. During that time, kids will learn how bikes are built, how to maintain them, and the essentials of road safety.
"We will be partnering with volunteers from La Bikequerie...with representatives from the local RCMP, as well as MPI, who will be coming to run their bike rodeo workshop at the end of the week," she says.
The hope is that, in the Automobile City, kids on two wheels will be both confident and safe on the roads—an essential for some families.
"A lot of newcomers don't have cars, or they have one car per family. Often, the dads work and so the mom and children need to get around," says Donna Pae, the HIPPY program coordinator with EIS.
"So, I think to be able to give them bikes, and teach them how to use it safely, is very important."
Although the program is already full, Schwabauer says the impact doesn’t end there.
"They can provide this information to their peers," she says. "I hope it's going to spread."