Cycle of giving continues for WRENCH

WINNIPEG

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This article was published 11/12/2024 (661 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

For the WRENCH, the holiday season kicks off with its annual Cycle of Giving.

On Nov. 30 and Dec. 1, staff and volunteers of Winnipeg’s largest not-for-profit bicycle shop spent 24 hours at Lord Roberts Community Centre (725 Kylemore Ave.), building and repairing over 350 kids’ bicycles. Those bikes are then distributed to a number of community organizations across the province, including community and family centres, daycares, and First Nations, to gift to kids who can use them.

“We know bikes and we’re quite good at bike stuff,” said Merrill Grant, executive director of WRENCH. “But those organizations know the families they work with and can make sure those bikes are put to good use.”

According to its website, the WRENCH, which was founded in 2010 and is located at 1057 Logan Ave., uses “volunteer labour and bike parts reclaimed from the waste stream to create community bike programming aimed at educating youth, empowering volunteers and providing people with affordable, sustainable active transportation options.”

This year, more bikes came through the WRENCH’s doors than ever before.

“We see upwards of 3,000 bikes every year come through,” Grant said. “It’s an ongoing operation to make sure those bikes are going where they need to go and supporting our programming, getting into the hands of Winnipeg cyclists. If they aren’t suitable, those materials are reclaimed and recycled in an appropriate way or re-used for our programming.”

For the WRENCH, the annual Cycle of Giving, or CoG, acts as a means of both helping families in need during the holidays while also meeting its mandate, with its focus on education, material reclamation, and affordability.

“At Cycle of Giving, a lot of the folks who volunteer are folks who have learned their bike skills with us,” said Grant, who started with WRENCH as a volunteer, teaching youth programming.

“A lot of those kids’ bikes are … given a second life and can go on to be used again and again, to be used by different children. We want bikes and cycling to be accessible to everyone. We know how fast kids outgrow bikes and this is a way we can make sure families have safe kids bikes that fit.”

While the primary materials for the bikes are donated or reclaimed, and volunteers put in the labour, Grant said each bike still costs about $25 in input costs.

“This all takes money, and staff time and volunteer time,” Grant said.

While donations in cash are accepted year-round, Grant added that volunteers are also always needed — and welcome.

“We’re always looking to work with volunteers,” Grant said. “We have lots of opportunities for everyone, regardless of skill level. We see ourselves as a place of growth. If we can teach you to sort parts, that’s a foot in the door, and the growth is infinite from there. You can learn with us and we love being a place of learning.”

For more information, or to make a donation, visit thewrench.ca