129 kids get new bikes, helmets for holidays

Esther Short — For the sixth year, the Children’s Justice Centers’ multidisciplinary team joined the International Longshoremen’s Union Local No. 4 and the Vancouver Fire Department to donate bikes and helmets to needy children for the holidays. This year, 129 kids from households without the ability to purchase a bicycle benefited from the ongoing effort. The Longshoremen bought the bikes, and assembled and tested them for safety before they were donated. Firefighters made sure each bike rider had a helmet. “These gifts are especially important because many of the children involved with CJC are living in foster care or have been placed with relatives who do not have the means to provide this kind of gift,” wrote Children’s Justice Center Executive Director Mary Blanchette.