How Can I Help?

What's the connection between Lincoln, Nebraska and Baclayon National High School in Bohol, Philippines? The answer is next month's Featured Volunteer!

Meet Carlton Styron. Back in December of 2012 Carlton sent us an email:

Hello, My Name is Carlton Styron and I reside in Lincoln, Nebraska. As I will be moving soon to the Philippines, I had the notion to find a worthy and helpful cause to participate in while there, and found your website. I am a huge bike lover and mechanic. Do you need help with anything in the Philippines?

 It was that simple question in nothing more than an introductory email to Bikes for the World that got the wheel turning. We put Carlton in touch with Bikes for the Philippines Director Joel Uichico who was at that moment awaiting the arrival of a second container of bikes from Bikes for the World.

Once bikes arrive in Manila, Joel faces the daunting task of not just unloading five hundred plus bikes, but reassembling and fixing almost all of them. Donated bikes are discarded for a reason, most often, they need repaired. Here's where Carlton comes in.

Recently, a dedicated crew of Pinoy volunteers gathered together to turn these bikes from Bikes for the World back into valuable, usable bikes that will help keep kids in school in remote areas of the Philippines. These bikes were donated by individuals in the Northern Virginia area as well as from the national retail chain DICK'S Sporting Goods.

Carlton was one of the many volunteers who assessed and fixed  the bikes that would be donated to the students in Bohol and Cebu. He quickly noticed the need for spare parts, new and used, when trying to give these old bikes a new life. 

"First we go through all the bikes, set the handle bars, install the pedals and do minor repairs. An assessment is taken of each bike to know of any other problems, then the more experienced mechanics take care of the rest. It works smooth as silk," Carlton Styron

This blue bike you see him with here came to us through a special donor from New Jersey who goes by the name Plong-Plong. Plong is originally from the neighboring town where our bikes were first donated. He knows the terrain well that these students navigate just to get to school. He contacted Bikes for the World desperately wanting to help. The handful of bikes he donated are among this shipment being sent to the second school district in Bohol.

Recently Carlton had the opportunity to travel to the island of Bohol and meet the kids he was helping in that warehouse in Manila. Putting a face to a frame really puts this kind of work in perspective.

Leila Ungab is one of the new beneficiaries in the Bikes for the Philippines education program. Carlton is the mechanic who revived her donated bike that will help get her to and from school quickly and safely.

While in Baclayon, Carlton met with the teachers behind the success of this program. He saw first-hand how valuable these bikes are to the student residents who need them to get to school on time. He also got share some of his bike knowledge with the young budding mechanics. All students who receive a bike are required to know certain maintenance techniques to keep the bike in good standing.

Carlton Styron is an individual example of the global reach of this program. Carlton's wife was from the Philippines and he wanted to experience Philippine life. He also loved bikes and wanted to give something back during his stay. He reached out to Bikes for the World to make a difference in his new home in the Philippines before he even left Nebraska. We introduced him to the perfect meld: Bikes for the Philippines.

When Carlton began with this organization what he found  was a well organized program with an amazing leader. "Joel is the perfect person to head this up. He has a big heart for the children," Carlton recently reported to us via email. What he also found, was a rewarding volunteer experience that was making a difference in a community half a world away from his previous home.

You can help support this Bikes for Education initiative by supporting Bikes for the World right here at home. You can donate a bike, your time, or financially to help bring a bike to someone who will use it to make a positive impact on his or her life. Bike accessories and new and used parts are a big part of what keeps this program sustainable. Your donation will help us provide used bikes, training, or tools to mechanics in need. DONATE TODAY.

Bikes for Education

Last month Bikes for the World's partner Bikes for the Philippines signed a Memorandum of Agreement with the Department of Education in the Philippines.

Education Secretary Armin Luistro said bike donations from the Bikes for the Philippines Foundation Inc. will provide suitable means of transportation for poor but deserving individuals and help teach them valuable skills making this a two pronged benefit.

"The students have a hard time going to school due to lack of suitable transportation and they are at high risk of dropping out," Luistro said. “The bikes will not only help them get to school but also provides a way to teach road safety and environmentalism.”

The importance of this project, dubbed Bikes for Education, is clear and simple: keeping kids in school. Throughout the Philippines the drop rate among students is a persistent problem. According to DepEd data, the drop-out rate among high school students in Bohol was high at 5.63 percent in 2011.

This pilot bike project brought about 150 bikes to students in Bohol with another 200 about to be delivered to a neighboring school district. Recently another 50 were delivered to a school on the island of Cebu. Every single bike represents one step closer to graduation for its new owner.

Many students are responsible for chores around the house before and after school. Beneficiaries in the bike program all live 3km or more from school and many of them walk this distance to and from school every day.

The school day runs from 8 to 5 and if the kids are late they have to sit out until the afternoon session, missing valuable lessons. The roads to school are also steep and rough and students are often walking home in the dark. After completing family chores there is little time for homework.

On the rough, sometimes crowded roads in these remote towns you might find an overcrowded bus with students hanging off the roof. Jeepneys and habel-habels (seen left) can be found on the shared roads these kids are traveling to and from school.

Although motorized transportation is available in these areas, the fares are often too expensive. The rides can also be quite dangerous. Walking six miles round trip to school is often a burden some families cannot endure and students are forced to drop out.

Beneficiaries in the program are required to wear helmets and pass extensive written and hands on tests regarding road and bike safety and maintenance.

Students are encouraged to mentor younger students and often take part in community activities from feeding orphans, to spreading cycling advocacy in town, to standing up for environmental causes like Earth Hour.

Bikes for the Philippines director Joel Uichico said they are looking into expanding the project to cover more areas. With the partnership forged between Bikes for the Philippines and Department of Education this is a hope and dream likely to come true.

"I have asked the field offices to evaluate their areas to see if their students can be beneficiaries as well," Luistro said. This partnership is like adding hundreds of feet to the ground, people who are in place already who can provide feedback in many different areas of the Philippines.

The success of the original pilot program was in large part thanks to the combined efforts of the educational system of Baclayon. The teachers, principals, and school administrators made this effort work. The program itself was incorporated into the school curriculum. Teachers had first hand knowledge of how the bikes were making a difference in the classroom from kids coming to school with completed homework to participating in class with increased energy and enthusiasm.

This project was put together like a classroom assignment and carried out by those who know that best. Now, working hand and hand with the Department of Education when trying to reach a country made of islands, Bikes for the Philippines is poised to reach a greater number of students in many different districts, in turn, hopefully, lowering the drop out rate significantly across the country.

The Department of Education rates a school's performance (as well as an individual teacher's) based on three indicators: National Achievement Test results, liquidation of expenses, and the drop-out rate. Lowering the national drop-out rate has been a concern for DepEd and Bikes for the Philippines. Together they hope to keep kids in school, give them an education, and build stronger communities in all areas of the Philippines.

Students Gear Up For College

Graduates of Baclayon National High School

Congratulations to the first batch of beneficiaries to graduate from Baclayon National High School. Bikes for the Philippines was established to help keep students who live a great distance from school from dropping out by supplying them with transportation to school. Every single fourth year student loaned a bike last year through this program earned it by graduating high school!

Cristy Joy Razo and Eunice Faith Pude

Not only did all the 'seniors' graduate, but two students in the bike program just left for college the weekend of May 25-26 2013. Through the Passerelles numériques(PN) program two of our bike beneficiaries were awarded scholarships to attend the University of San Carlos in Cebu.

Cristy Joy Razo and Eunice Faith Pude, seen here with BNHS Principal Elvira Jabonillo, were both awarded a PN scholarship to attend university and earn a degree in IT. Room, board, and tuition will all be paid for by PN.

Through education, Passerelles numériques enables the most underprivileged young people to access employment in the promising sector of computer technology and break the cycle of poverty within their families.

Cristy Joy Razo

Bikes for the World was founded by Keith Oberg in 2005 after he saw first hand the effects the lack of transportation had on countless families and an entire community. Whether it be for school, work, or heath care, making bikes available to underprivileged people was a high priority.

 Enter Joel Uichico, founder of Bikes for the Philippines. He also saw a need to bring bicycles to the Philippines to not only keep adolescents enrolled in school, but also to bring to them a better way of life. So Oberg and Uichico eventually joined forces to bring to these students affordable (FREE!) bicycles in hopes of keeping them in school, giving them the means to a better education, and giving them hope for the future.

Bikes for the World simply delivered a container of bicycles to a project. It was the educators in the system that delivered an amazing program. And the students just plain delivered. They took an interest in the program, respected the initiative, and gave us exactly the results we were looking for.

Eunice Pude

Eunice Pude received this Magna through the Bikes for Philippines Bikes for Education program early in 2011 in the pilot program introduced in her high school in Baclayon. Students were chosen for the program in part due to their distance from the high school, which officials were noticing played an important part in why the drop out rate was so significant.

Eunice, in fact, probably lived the furthest from the school at 7km, making her round trip commute over 8 miles a day! Despite the rocky terrain and steep hills she had to climb, she mastered the bike and was able to save a ton of time riding to school instead of walking.

Eunice and Cristy Joy...with Joe in the background

Teachers reported students having more energy in class, were better prepared, arrived on time, and stayed more alert throughout the day after receiving their bikes. Some of the quieter students even gained more confidence once they entered the bike program.

Congratulations again to Eunice Pude, Cristy Joy Razo, and all the bike beneficiaries in the Philippines education program. The second project in a neighboring community of Maribojoc is about to launch with bikes already delivered by Bikes for the World. We hope Cristy and Eunice serve as role models to all the students and show them there is room to dream for a bigger future. Many of these students have never left the island of Bohol. Cristy and Eunice are currently in Cebu with the rest of the 2016 class orienting themselves to a new lifestyle, new friends, and brand new plans for their futures.And we hope they decided to take their bikes!

Courtesy PN and Marie Serreau

Will Run For Bike Parts

Bus service for students of Maribojoc

The latest project of the Bikes for Education branch of Bikes for the Philippines will bring bikes to these students of Maribojoc. This school district is in a neighboring town from the pilot project that brought donated bikes from the United States to the island of Bohol in the Philippines. Bikes were loaned to students who lived over 3km from school to help keep them enrolled in school.

Bolandrina family loading bikes at Lorton

Bikes for the World sent a second container of over 500 bikes to Bikes for the Philippines. This shipment has just arrived in Manila. These bikes will be going to the students of Maribojoc. We loaded this container in November with the help of a Massachusetts (yes way up there) volunteer, Joe Bolandrina. Joe packed up his car with his family and loaded a rack full of donated bikes then drove all the way to Lorton Virginia to help pack this container for the Philippines.

Joe also held a collection last year and is doing another one this year through a similar organization in the Boston area called Bikes Not Bombs. His daughter Lily did a school project on this effort and has already started collecting bikes for similar projects.

As with our first container, the bikes will be unloaded and stored in a warehouse on the main island where Manila is located. The Philippine Army is preparing to help unload the bikes and look them over before transporting them to the island of Bohol.

Bike beneficiaries run to raise money for spare parts

This past weekend three bike recipients and Director Joel Uichico ran in the Condura Skyway Marathon to help raise money for spare parts to keep their donated bikes rolling.

Results from the Condura Skyway Marathon:
1. Nino Rex placed 241 with a gun time of 1:12:57 and a chip time of 50:55
2. Joseph placed 242 with a gun time of 1:12:58 and a chip time of 50:55
3. Lovezyn placed 2284 with a gun time of 1:59:46 and a chip time of 1:37:43
All three completed the 10 K.
 Joel completed the 21K.

Congratulation to all the runners in the Condura Skyway Marathon!
I bet you all are ready for those bikes now.

Go Joe!

The Bikes for the Philippines' Bikes for Education project is one of our favorite projects we donate bikes to and not just because we've been there, met the beneficiaries, and even rode to and from school with them. This program, which was started about a year ago, provides bicycles to students who live over 3 km from school in an effort to keep them enrolled in school and eventually graduating. The students are taught how to ride, basic mechanic skills, and overall bike safety as part of the school curriculum.  THIS is why we love this project!

Courtesy: The Coffee

We were excited to learn that Bikes for the Philippines had successfully documented the first installment of bikes that were distributed in Baclayon, where we visited. They were ready for container TWO! This shipment of bikes, using the same model, would be used in the village of Maribojoc, very near Baclayon, again on the island of Bohol. Students will be hand selected and interviewed before entering the program. As with the pilot project, students will be allowed to use the bikes to get to and from school only, earning them upon graduation.

Andrew Glover with Plong-Plong in NJ

Back at home we had been collecting bikes, some specifically for this project. Jo Grant, who approached BfW for bikes for BfP had a collection in Boston earlier this year. Joel Esguerra, working with Gensler, has done a ton of fundraising for this project, as well has holding a collection this summer.

Plong-Plong, seen here in his BfW Tshirt, donated several bikes he collected in his NJ neighborhood for BfW. Because Plong-Plong is from Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines (the city between the two Bikes for Education projects) we made an exception and set those bikes aside for the Philippines shipment.

Bolandrina family

Fast forward to November. Joe Bolandrina and family, Grethel, Lilly, and Max! packed up the car and drove from Massachusetts all the way to our Lorton VA storage site to help us load this next container for the Philippines. Grethel had moved from the Philippines in the 80s and Joe had helped out at that collection outside Boston in the spring. They fell in love with the program and had to help!

And help they did. We got over 500 bikes in this container, which is now on its way to the Philippines. This family of four must have rolled 2/3 of the bikes in there themselves. Lilly and Max were troopers. Max struggled with quite a few bikes that towered over his head, but never gave up. And Lilly documented the whole trip for a school project. In fact we already had a donation from their school come in after a student carried home a flyer in his backpack about our project.

Lilly Bolandrina loading a bike from Massachusetts

"I'm Lilly Bolandrina. I helped Bikes for the Philippines donate bikes for kids and adults in the Philippines. I did this because my dad wanted us to come and see what it is like to go to Virginia and watch him help Keith ( the person who does Bikes for the World) donate these bikes. Bikes for the World helps Bikes for the Philippines. Instead of just watching my dad help I helped as well. I wheeled bikes from the abandoned prison gym to the container that gets shipped to the Philippines. It was very hard because most bikes were very heavy and the wheels would not turn on some.It was really cool to see all the different sized bikes and a couple of tricycles. Some of the bikes also were missing parts so they looked funny. We helped for four hours until we had to leave.

Lilly and Max sealing the container

Then tomorrow we came back again to finish loading the container with bikes. We crammed 501 or 502 bikes into the container . Most of the bikes were mountain bikes and baby bikes. Still, there were some road bikes and quite a lot of young children bikes. On the second day of filling the container we only had to work for two hours. I got to give the very last bike to go inside the container. Then my little brother and I put the little I.D. tag on the container to show that it hasn't been opened yet."

Thank you Lilly, Max, Grethel, and Joe! The next step is traveling to Maribojoc to meet the bike beneficiaries and ride with them. I'm pretty sure I saw Joe marking a bike to be set aside for him to borrow while he is there! It would be a treat to track Plong-Plong's (a long time friend of Joe's) donations as well as bikes the Bolandrina's donated.

Check out Joe's enthusiasm as he donates his older son's first Gary Fisher:

Powered By Education

 

 JOE ISRAEL

Joe Israel was one of the first bike recipients in the Bikes for Education program in Baclayon, on the island of Bohol, Philippines. Through this program students were identified and interviewed by local Bikes for the World partner, Bikes for the Philippines (BfP). The bikes are intended to help students living over 3km from school to stay enrolled in class by loaning them a faster, safer means of transportation.

The drop out rate in Baclayon, like many other communities in the Philippines, is in danger of rising due to the location of the schools in relation to the students' homes. In the village of Baclayon there are many primary schools but only one high school. Therefore, even if a student lives relatively close to school chances are once they enter high school they may not. Two of the critical areas forcing students to drop out are household income and distance from school. Many of the students are an integral part of the household, completing essential chores or helping to care for younger siblings, and the time spent walking to school (sometimes over 4 hours a day) becomes too big a burden on many families. That is why these two factors played a big part in who was chosen by BfP to receive a bicycle.

Joe mentors younger girls in mechanics

 What BfP and the teachers running the program found was the bicycle offered much more than just a means to better transportation. All the bike recipients are required to go through a pretty tough training program in order to earn a bicycle.  Some didn't know how to ride at all and almost all knew nothing about changing a tire or cleaning a chain.

Just learning to ride offered a new sense of confidence to these beneficiaries. The local bike club joined the students on Saturdays and took them on community rides providing a unique mentoring program to the older students. Once the kids became more skilled they in turn mentored the younger students who received their bikes later. The donation process was staggered to allow for this students-training-students model.

The Boys of Baclayon

When I was there in February I not only met Joe (in the black shirt Left) but I also got to ride with him and all of the students from Baclayon National High School. What I found was a strong group of riders (who kicked my butt on the steep rocky hills of Baclayon) and a caring, considerate clique. Joe made sure I never got lost on the remote trails and delivered me safely to my hotel in the dark.

On one of the rides, one student fell coming down a steep hill. All of the boys we were riding with stopped, organized, and made sure she was taken care of properly. Some of the boys went and got help (she was pretty shaken up but not seriously injured) and the others stayed with Michelle holding and supporting her until help came. I was very touched by their sensitivity and maturity. The camaraderie our donated bikes brought this group of students was beyond inspirational.

Joe received training at The Rock a local bakery

Spring 2012 the first group of students have graduated from school and this pilot bike program, earning them the bike and more importantly, their high school diplomas. Several bike beneficiaries went on to train in fields such as hospitality and organic farming.

The community has recognized the impact this bike program has on the entire village.  In fact, several local businesses stepped up to offer internships to graduating beneficiaries. Joe went on to receive training at Rock111 a local bakery learning the basics of running a bakery business. He joined several other bike beneficiaries including Joan Igcas in this life sculpting opportunity.

Bikes For Education

SHERWIN and RON NARBAY

For Ron and Sherwin a bicycle could be the difference between graduating and not finishing school at all. In fact, many students in Baclayon, a remote community on the island of Bohol Philippines, travel many miles every day just to get to and from school. With only one high school in the village, students are often forced to travel more miles once they move up in school. This burdens not only the student but the entire family as less time can be devoted to necessary household chores.

The road to the Narbay's

Ron and Sherwin leave their house at 5am every morning in hopes of arriving to school on time after walking the two hour commute. The rough roads of Baclayon are long and rocky. After the rain, the roads become dangerously slippery. Some students do not even have shoes and most cannot afford transportation IF it even approaches their homes.

Both Ron and Sherwin have fallen on the slippery terrain after running in an attempt to make it to school on time. Students are not allowed to enter the classroom if they are late. They must wait until the afternoon session, causing them to miss half the school day.

Rowena Narbay, mother of Sherwin and Ron

The boys admit it would be easier many days to just not go to school. But they also know that the small sacrifices are worth the end result. Their parents did not finish school and struggle to find work to make ends meet. When Sherwin asked his mom for a bicycle to make the trip to school easier, she reluctantly had to tell him they could not afford it.

After a long day at school and a two hour commute home, students are exhausted and often racing daylight. Sometimes they don't even have enough time to finish their homework after completing the household chores at night. Teachers have also found students tired and distracted in the classrooms.

Since Bikes for the Philippines partnered with Bikes for the World students who live over 3km from school became eligible to receive a loaned bicycle through the program. Students who had once dropped out completely came back to school through this program and at least one of them has graduated back into the mainstream education system. Teachers tell stories of students who are more focused and on time for school. Parents are proud to have their children enrolled and thriving in school. There's plenty of time of chores and homework and most importantly, hope for the future.

Ron and Sherwin tell their story to Ako Ang Simula, a local television program:
(with English subtitles)

Bike To School

Bike Train USA Photo Courtesy Bruce Buckley                                                                                              

At Bikes for the World we are in the practice of showing you where in the world your bike ends up. But we all know where it came from is just as important. Many of our donated bikes come to us with a lifetime of memories. A bike that ends up in rural Africa helping a banana farmer or one that is keeping a young Filipino in school once spun around our suburban neighborhoods perhaps in Northern Virginia or Western Maryland.

Every bike has a story. In fact here's a local story about school students using their bikes to get to school right here in Virginia. Wolfie's Bike Train began in 2011 under the supervision of Jeff Anderson, cyclist and Dad of three. Once a month this Bike Train leaves their neighborhood collecting kids along the way and safely delivering them to school via their own pedal power.

Students at Colvin Run Elementary

Besides loving the commute to school these young cyclists are giving a fresh, energetic voice to the true power of the bicycle. And for them it's not just about riding.

Bikes for the World frequently partners with area schools and youth groups who lead and manage many of our bike collections and help load bikes to be shipped overseas. It is beyond inspirational to basically see kids helping kids get to school on the other side of the world.

It is a unique experience for these kids to do something in their own backyard that has such a global impact. Meanwhile, on the backside of the globe, students of the same age are receiving, sometimes, their very first bikes through the generosity of these students in the DC area. This is a Bike Train that spans the ocean!

Schools often use this Bikes for the World experience in tandem with various lesson plans to bring the culture of another country into the classroom as well as teaching the value of community service and the importance of recycling. It's truly a win, win, win.

"I'm so glad we have you as a partner. It is such a great learning experience for the kids. They thoroughly got into it and to helping others in far off lands." Marlene Guroff, Colvin Run Counselor.

 "We felt so good about our collection, and the kids came through in spades to help out!  Those who went to the bike shop to learn the process were great mentors to the others, and they actually enjoyed the process of breaking down the bikes.  We had several girls who learned to wield a wrench with the best of the boys!!!" Becky Copenhaver, Cape Fear Academy NC

"We only have one planet. We can't spoil it." Joshua Spokes, Student Collection Manager

To learn more about how your school or youth group can get involved visit Bikes for the World and check out this video highlighting school involvement.