Joseth Antonio Hondoy Hernandez

Joseth received this bicycle from our shipment that arrived last month and included our 200,000th bike. Joseth received one of the first bikes in our next count toward 300,000th! His new Kona is a symbol of continued growth for Bikes for the World AND Joseth.

Joseth  is an intelligent and bold young man who is working hard to finish his studies. He just turned 18 and was given this bicycle through a collaboration with BfW, SOS Children's Villages and Costa Rica Foundation for Children. Joseth lives in the Villages because he doesn't have a mother or father. SOS Villages helps care for youth in similar situations; however, once you turn 18 you 'age out' of the program. 

SOS Villages works throughout a young person's life to help build a sustainable foundation, developing skills and confidence they need to find work to support themselves. Once they turn 18 they have the flexibility to continue living in the Villages IF they find work and contribute financially to their stay.

This bike came to Joseth at a critical time, his 18th birthday. Joseth works in a grocery store that is almost 10 miles away and uses the bike to commute from the Villages to work. He is saving over $200 a month in transportation fees now that he has this bike. A bike is often a symbol of freedom, and for Joseth it truly is. This bike is his first personal possession and it represents his freedom through mobility. 

A bike is often synonymous with adventure and exploration from our earliest days into adulthood. As Joseth makes that transition he may also argue that his bike is a vehicle of hope.