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Life-Changing Bikes Given Away

by Emily Kirchner

Last spring, several Logan Square residents saw a small but significant change in their lives when they were awarded free bicycles from Bicycling Magazine’s Biketown U.S.A. program.

Biketown U.S.A. grants bicycles to individuals from select cities. Applicants must write a short essay explaining how a bicycle will change their life.
This year, Chicagoland Bicycle Federation’s liaison to the Latino community, Pete Rangel, and CBF board member Lucy Gomez Feliciano worked with the Logan Square Neighborhood Association to identify residents who could benefit from this giveaway. They were among 50 Chicagoans who won bicycles.

For a few of the winners, their free bicycles are the catalyst they needed to adopt healthier lifestyles.

Erika Soto, who won a beige Giant Cypress EX, is now able to ride to the park with her family. Soto said she spent hours riding around Humboldt Park with her husband, her 12-year-old son and her 7-year-old daughter.
In addition to spending quality time with her family, Soto said, “I feel better,

I’ve lost a little weight, and I have more energy.”

Now she’s commuting to her job at a local school. “I can go to work on the bike without using a car. And with gas prices ... I can save money.”

Marlyn Newmann, mother of Tammy Newmann, was excited about the bike her daughter received last spring. She explained that her daughter “rides to the store, to (her mother’s) house, all over the place.” Newmann’s daughter is the grandmother of a new boy and a new girl born a few weeks apart, making her a very busy woman.

“She has been riding quite a bit. She has been trying to get her weight down,” Newmann said.

“She really likes her bike,” Newmann added.

Another recipient of a free bike, Maria Salazar, also loves to ride in Humboldt Park, but a recent leg injury has kept her from reaping the full benefits of owning the bike. “The doctor told me not to use the bike.” she lamented, and she doesn’t know when she will be able to ride again.

Emily Kirchner is a volunteer Bike Traffic editor and contributor