Featured Volunteer: Glenn Martin

Glenn joined the Bikes for the World team several years ago while we were still operating out of Arlington VA. No one may have been more excited to see us move back across the river to Rockville than Glenn. Back then we saw him maybe once a week, now it's once or twice a day!

Glenn is a huge help to us given his bike knowledge and mechanics skills. He drops by the work stands several times a week as a way to unwind and let his mind wander. He's so experienced with bike parts and tools he can just mindlessly plow through the pile of bikes to be stripped of parts. This is most important outside the school season, when our Stone Ridge crew is away from the warehouse and that stack of bikes can easily grow out of control. 

Glenn helps us keep the parts wall neat and organized and oversees the boxes of parts packed for every shipment. He is a goto for advice on what to ship and what to strip. He also plays a big part in our Big Bear refurbished bike sale (which is coming up this month). He helps rebuild those bike for sale and assists buyers with finding the perfect bike from size to use to value.

Back in the warehouse, our volunteers, new and veteran, look to Glenn for advice when prepping bikes, building them, or stripping parts. Even Jonathan leaned on him while he was getting his sea-container legs when he first started. Jonathan is also incredibly thankful to have Glenn's help loading our containers in record time.

Since Bikes for the World increased the number of pick ups over the past couple years, we have actually brought Glenn onto our payroll part time. He helps Jonathan stay on top of our bike shop picks up both in Virginia and Maryland. He works in all weather and drives whichever truck is thrown at him. He's also made several trips to recycling centers to bring back bikes and assisted at collection points where he also occasionally mentors the young mechanics prepping our bikes.

As we expanded our volunteer opportunities this summer to include more technical work, Glenn stepped up to help us train the new crew of volunteers coming through, as we bridged the gap between when Bob left and Jonathan came on board. With his help, we were able the keep the wheels turning without delay, avoiding a build up of bikes to strip, and keeping the supply of parts flowing to our partners around the world. 

When Glenn isn't tooling around the warehouse you can likely find him on some extended bike ride or bike related vacation.