Kiwanis Club Awards Grant
Norte turns grant from Kiwanis Club into new bikes for Norte’s bike library.
Traverse City, MI. Through a generous grant from the Kiwanis Club of Traverse City, more local youth will ride bikes with Norte, and have a bike to ride at home.
The club awarded a $5,600 grant to expand the nonprofit’s Grand Traverse Regional Kids’ Bike Library. This fall, these funds will provide 20 new bikes for young riders enrolled in Norte youth bike programs. Registration is open for Adventure Bike Club and the Northern Michigan Youth Mountain Bike Team. All Norte programs have a “No bike? No problem” policy.
“For years, our local Kiwanis club has been a proud partner of Norte and an appreciative observer of Norte’s efforts to improve the safety and independence of children in our area,” said Kiwanis Club President Marty Stevenson. “The Kiwanis Club Foundation of Traverse City is honored to award 2022’s grant to Norte, adding several bikes to their bike library and furthering Norte’s tremendous work improving the lives of our area youth.”
Norte supporter Suttons Bay Bikes is also contributing to the project. The bike shop has already delivered ten “adventure-ready” Fuji Dynamite Sport mountain bikes in time for this fall. The bike shop worked with Norte to provide the bikes at a reduced cost.
“The addition of these bikes from Suttons Bay Bikes ensures we will have a bike to loan almost any child,” said Norte Chief Bike Mechanic Tyler Wituszynski. “Providing quality, well-tuned bikes — that fit — goes a long way to creating lifelong cyclists who view bikes as more than toys. It’s an awesome project that gets to the heart of what Norte is all about — putting more kids on bikes.”
The Grand Traverse Regional Kids’ Bike Library lends bikes to young people ages 3 to 10. It offers bikes to children for as long as it fits them. Once they outgrow the bike, they return it to Norte for the next size up. The library also provides well-tuned, geared bicycles for program participants. The bike library is possible because of continued community support and donations.
