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EARN-A-BIKE
BICYCLE LEADERS
BICYCLE RIDES & TOURING
OUR SUMMER PLANS
YOUTH OUT SPOKE'N
PROGRAM CALENDAR
HENRY JACKSON-SPIEKER:
From Student to Teacher
Going on six years at Bike Works, Henry has pedaled the distance to get to where he is now. At the age of 12, Henry began the basic Earn-a-Bike class where he was first introduced to wrenching. After that it seemed he couldn't get enough and proceeded to take every single class and camp that we offered. Henry was an integral part of the very first Bike Works bike-touring trip. After facing the challenges of leaving home for the first time, camping in the woods, cycling 50 to 70 miles a day, day after day - Henry developed a love of the outdoors. He became a true leader for his peers and set a great example - that no matter how daunting the task, one can persevere, overcome, and wind up stronger when the sun sets.
Last summer Henry landed his first job as a bicycle mechanic at REI's Flagship store in downtown Seattle - and we quickly received feedback from his supervisors that his mechanical skills were outstanding, and quite frankly, that he was one remarkable 17 year old.
Coming full circle during the winter of 2008, the month he turned 18, Henry began teaching an Earn-a-Bike class of his own at Bike Works. Big eyed and squirmy, the 9- to 12-year-olds gathered in the classroom, soaking up his every word. They idolized him and his story, and he in turn learned that he liked to teach, and developed a newfound respect for those who had taught him - both here and at school.
This summer Henry co-presented at the national Pro Walk/Pro Bike Conference in Seattle on behalf of Bike Works, sharing his advice on how to successfully engage youth in bicycling programs. In the fall Henry will head off to Western Washington University to pursue a degree in glass-blowing and engineering. While we're sad to see Henry graduate from our programs, we couldn't be prouder of Henry and we look forward to what he will do in this world.
Click here to download a PDF of our 2009 Program Plans.
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YOUTH OUT SPOKE'N
The active promotion of participation for young people leads to positive change within our community. This can be done by ensuring more involvement and opportunities for them to have a real say in decision making, and to be involved in real participation - Youth Out Spoke'N is that opportunity here at Bike Works. We involve young people in their community which helps youth to develop new skills and promote links within communities; and it catalyzes future youth involvement in community change.
Over the past six years of Street Burners, even as youth members have come and gone, there has been continual talk among the youth about the hope to see a BMX park in their neighborhood - one in South Seattle. At a Street Burners Meeting in 2006 and through follow-up conversations, we formed a BMX Committee Youth Team made up of 13 Bike Works alumni ranging in age from 11 to 17. Each was asked to make a commitment to the project by their fellow team mates - and agreed to be available for the meetings as well as weekend field trips to represent the project at various community and partnership meetings.
The nearest place for BMXers to practice is our back alley on our homemade ramps. Having recognized that an alley is not an ideal location for long term skill development or for self-esteem development for the youth, Bike Works programs makes it possible to travel with the youth to the nearest locations to our home base - and the neighborhood we serve: Lower Woodland Park BMX jumps in Green Lake which is a 45 min. van ride, or the North Sea-Tac BMX track which is also a 45 min. van ride. These long van rides are made possible by the generous donation of a van by King County in January of 2006, but previous to this gift the program staff at Bike Works would travel the hour and a half one-way bus trip with the youth on a monthly basis.
One day we hope that the South Seattle BMX dream will become a reality. So far, in their advocacy efforts, Bike Works youth have accomplished the following: compiled a list of possible supporters throughout the community; sent out initial outreach letters to that list; conducted site-visits and photo-documentation trips to three local BMX parks and/or potential sites; attended and made public comment at the Lower Woodland Skate park proposal public meeting; designed a petition for support and petitioned at the Cascade Bicycle Club's Bike Expo -collecting almost 100 signatures; presented to the Parks and Recreation Department, and an informal coalition of supporters; prepared a statement for the City of Seattle's Department of Finance Capital Improvements Program; and presented their ideas to the Mayor and group of youth at the Mayor's Youth Town Hall. Quite a list of accomplishments!
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