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ROCKVILLE, MD–On Saturday, December 5th, Bikes for the World, a DC area-based non-profit, shipped its 40,000th bike for donation to programs that help people who need affordable transportation overseas. The shipment containing this milestone bike is bound for the Panamanian Association of Goodwill Industries, a long-time Bikes for the World charity partner. 
Keith Oberg, Director of Bikes for the World, loads the 40,000th bike to be shipped overseas
The bikes donated by Bikes for the World are sold by the local partner at low prices. These bikes not only provide Panamanian workers, tradesmen, and students with affordable transport but enable the receiving organization to train and employ people with disabilities, building job skills and providing employment to a population often marginalized in the job market.
The mid-Atlantic network of Bikes for the World has quietly become the largest program of its type in the United States. The organization, operating out of a former hay barn in suburban Maryland and five nondescript storage trailers in Northern Virginia, has mobilized more than 150 faith communities, schools, scout troops, civic clubs, and businesses in a five-year period.
Collections have been held from North Carolina to Pennsylvania, to collect, prep, and ship thousands of bikes annually, in commercial shipping containers. Bikes for the World has developed a reputation for shipping high-quality used bicycles to reputable non-profit partners in Africa and the Caribbean Basin.
Partners typically train and employ local workers to recondition the bikes. Some of these organizations sell donated bikes at modest prices, to support their employment, training, and other community service activities. Others donate the bikes to people in exchange for volunteer work or to qualifying students who achieve satisfactory grades and live at a distance from school. Beneficiaries include low-income farmers, small-business people, and students, as well as salaried and volunteer community health, literacy, and agricultural extension workers. About Bikes for the World Bikes for the World is a nonprofit organization that rescues thousands of unwanted bicycles at community events throughout the lower mid-Atlantic region. The bikes are shipped to underprivileged communities overseas where they can transform lives by facilitating transportation to work, school, and health services. Bikes for the World is a sponsored project of the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit.
Since its founding in 2005, Bikes for the World has collected and donated nearly 40,000 bikes valued at more than $1.5 million. For more info, visit www.bikesfortheworld.org or call 703-525-0931. About Bikes for the World Partner Organizations Overseas Bikes for the World’s International partners include the Village Bike Project (www.ibf/vbp) in Ghana, the Fundación Integral Campesina in Costa Rica (www.fic.or.cr), Panama Association of Goodwill Industries , the Women Prisoners Support Organisation in Uganda (www.wpsouganda.org ) and non-profit groups in Guatemala, Honduras, The Gambia, Namibia, and elsewhere. These diverse partnerships serve the entire local community and are united in their commitment to promoting self-help and environmental stewardship. |
