Fresh off a drive in which it accepted donations of bikes, bike parts and tools, the Red Lantern Bike Shop in Braddock will open for the season on April 7.
Founder and board president Brian Sink said hours will be steady Thursday nights and Saturdays, with a couple of bike giveaways to be announced.
It will serve as host to various social service agencies on Fridays.
The nonprofit refurbishes and distributes bikes to underserved populations, including children and those with limited access to transportation.
According to Mr. Sink, it gives away about 200 small children’s bikes for free a year. With free bikes, refurbished bikes and repairs, it has touched about 10,000 people with a small group of volunteers since 2013.
“The first six years, we only did bike giveaways for kids out of our Braddock shipping container,” said Mr. Sink, who lives in Wilkins. “In 2020, we expanded and started operating at our Turtle Creek location.
“This was also the time of COVID-19 when the bike industry exploded. We decided to take a chance and refurbish adult bikes to sell at affordable prices and also [offer] professional bike repair.”
Mr. Sink said the organization has basic bike repair and maintenance classes and hopes to provide more youth programming. He said its busiest time is spring and summer.
The shop began with a surplus of used children’s bikes that Mr. Sink, who was volunteering for another bike repair facility at the time, and then-Braddock Mayor John Fetterman saved from the trash.
Mr. Fetterman, now Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor, approached Mr. Sink with the idea of opening a permanent shop in Braddock, with the mayor providing space in an old shipping container.
Red Lantern — named after the competitor in last place in a cycling race such as the Tour de France — gave away its first bike in May 2013.
Mr. Fetterman, a Democratic candidate in this year’s Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race, would like to see more shops such as Red Lantern statewide.
“I am enthusiastic about their mission,” he said. “Need a bike? Here it is. A helmet? You got it.
“It’s such a great model. I love to be involved.”
Mr. Sink said volunteers are believers in environmental stewardship who attempt to reuse or recycle all parts donated.
Amy Sheridan, 50, of Murrysville, Westmoreland County, said her 15-year-old son, James, was invited to become a mechanic after fixing and donating his sisters’ and friends’ bikes.
“Brian taught James so much about fixing bikes, that it wasn’t long before [then] 12-year-old James got to help customers who came to the shop needing a minor repair — a unique opportunity for someone so young to be part of something important,” she said. “The shop has a never-ending supply of bikes in need of repair.
“There’s always a new challenge. Obviously, it is great to get used bikes back into the community, but also the camaraderie and satisfaction of getting the bikes repaired is the main draw for James and his friends who join us.”
Ms. Sheridan said they pitch in where needed, which sometimes means cleaning and fixing bikes on gravel on a winter day outside the container in Braddock, transporting donated bikes, tuning bikes at the church in Turtle Creek on a spring evening, and organizing bikes for weekend giveaways and sales.
“We all remember that feeling of freedom on our childhood bikes,” she said. “Being able to give a child that moment, while at the same time saving a bike from a landfill, is fantastic.
“At the end of a day, our hands are always dirty, and we’re smiling.”
Marie Pagnotta, 33, of O’Hara, turned to Red Lantern when looking for a bike to ride in her neighborhood during the pandemic.
“I am grateful Red Lantern not only had one in stock, but [also] the mechanics refurbished it because I would have no idea where to begin,” she said. “I love that my money gives back to the community and benefits the environment.
“I can’t wait for their giveaway [social media] posts. I love seeing how happy and proud the kids are when they get their new bikes and helmets.”
Fresh off a drive in which it accepted donations of bikes, bike parts and tools, the Red Lantern Bike Shop in Braddock will open for the season on April 7.
Founder and board president Brian Sink said hours will be steady Thursday nights and Saturdays, with a couple of bike giveaways to be announced.
It will serve as host to various social service agencies on Fridays.
The nonprofit refurbishes and distributes bikes to underserved populations, including children and those with limited access to transportation.
According to Mr. Sink, it gives away about 200 small children’s bikes for free a year. With free bikes, refurbished bikes and repairs, it has touched about 10,000 people with a small group of volunteers since 2013.
“The first six years, we only did bike giveaways for kids out of our Braddock shipping container,” said Mr. Sink, who lives in Wilkins. “In 2020, we expanded and started operating at our Turtle Creek location.
“This was also the time of COVID-19 when the bike industry exploded. We decided to take a chance and refurbish adult bikes to sell at affordable prices and also [offer] professional bike repair.”
Mr. Sink said the organization has basic bike repair and maintenance classes and hopes to provide more youth programming. He said its busiest time is spring and summer.
The shop began with a surplus of used children’s bikes that Mr. Sink, who was volunteering for another bike repair facility at the time, and then-Braddock Mayor John Fetterman saved from the trash.
Mr. Fetterman, now Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor, approached Mr. Sink with the idea of opening a permanent shop in Braddock, with the mayor providing space in an old shipping container.
Red Lantern — named after the competitor in last place in a cycling race such as the Tour de France — gave away its first bike in May 2013.
Mr. Fetterman, a Democratic candidate in this year’s Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race, would like to see more shops such as Red Lantern statewide.
“I am enthusiastic about their mission,” he said. “Need a bike? Here it is. A helmet? You got it.
“It’s such a great model. I love to be involved.”
Mr. Sink said volunteers are believers in environmental stewardship who attempt to reuse or recycle all parts donated.
Amy Sheridan, 50, of Murrysville, Westmoreland County, said her 15-year-old son, James, was invited to become a mechanic after fixing and donating his sisters’ and friends’ bikes.
“Brian taught James so much about fixing bikes, that it wasn’t long before [then] 12-year-old James got to help customers who came to the shop needing a minor repair — a unique opportunity for someone so young to be part of something important,” she said. “The shop has a never-ending supply of bikes in need of repair.
“There’s always a new challenge. Obviously, it is great to get used bikes back into the community, but also the camaraderie and satisfaction of getting the bikes repaired is the main draw for James and his friends who join us.”
Ms. Sheridan said they pitch in where needed, which sometimes means cleaning and fixing bikes on gravel on a winter day outside the container in Braddock, transporting donated bikes, tuning bikes at the church in Turtle Creek on a spring evening, and organizing bikes for weekend giveaways and sales.
“We all remember that feeling of freedom on our childhood bikes,” she said. “Being able to give a child that moment, while at the same time saving a bike from a landfill, is fantastic.
“At the end of a day, our hands are always dirty, and we’re smiling.”
Marie Pagnotta, 33, of O’Hara, turned to Red Lantern when looking for a bike to ride in her neighborhood during the pandemic.
“I am grateful Red Lantern not only had one in stock, but [also] the mechanics refurbished it because I would have no idea where to begin,” she said. “I love that my money gives back to the community and benefits the environment.
“I can’t wait for their giveaway [social media] posts. I love seeing how happy and proud the kids are when they get their new bikes and helmets.”
Fresh off a drive in which it accepted donations of bikes, bike parts and tools, the Red Lantern Bike Shop in Braddock will open for the season on April 7.
Founder and board president Brian Sink said hours will be steady Thursday nights and Saturdays, with a couple of bike giveaways to be announced.
It will serve as host to various social service agencies on Fridays.
The nonprofit refurbishes and distributes bikes to underserved populations, including children and those with limited access to transportation.
According to Mr. Sink, it gives away about 200 small children’s bikes for free a year. With free bikes, refurbished bikes and repairs, it has touched about 10,000 people with a small group of volunteers since 2013.
“The first six years, we only did bike giveaways for kids out of our Braddock shipping container,” said Mr. Sink, who lives in Wilkins. “In 2020, we expanded and started operating at our Turtle Creek location.
“This was also the time of COVID-19 when the bike industry exploded. We decided to take a chance and refurbish adult bikes to sell at affordable prices and also [offer] professional bike repair.”
Mr. Sink said the organization has basic bike repair and maintenance classes and hopes to provide more youth programming. He said its busiest time is spring and summer.
The shop began with a surplus of used children’s bikes that Mr. Sink, who was volunteering for another bike repair facility at the time, and then-Braddock Mayor John Fetterman saved from the trash.
Mr. Fetterman, now Pennsylvania’s lieutenant governor, approached Mr. Sink with the idea of opening a permanent shop in Braddock, with the mayor providing space in an old shipping container.
Red Lantern — named after the competitor in last place in a cycling race such as the Tour de France — gave away its first bike in May 2013.
Mr. Fetterman, a Democratic candidate in this year’s Pennsylvania U.S. Senate race, would like to see more shops such as Red Lantern statewide.
“I am enthusiastic about their mission,” he said. “Need a bike? Here it is. A helmet? You got it.
“It’s such a great model. I love to be involved.”
Mr. Sink said volunteers are believers in environmental stewardship who attempt to reuse or recycle all parts donated.
Amy Sheridan, 50, of Murrysville, Westmoreland County, said her 15-year-old son, James, was invited to become a mechanic after fixing and donating his sisters’ and friends’ bikes.
“Brian taught James so much about fixing bikes, that it wasn’t long before [then] 12-year-old James got to help customers who came to the shop needing a minor repair — a unique opportunity for someone so young to be part of something important,” she said. “The shop has a never-ending supply of bikes in need of repair.
“There’s always a new challenge. Obviously, it is great to get used bikes back into the community, but also the camaraderie and satisfaction of getting the bikes repaired is the main draw for James and his friends who join us.”
Ms. Sheridan said they pitch in where needed, which sometimes means cleaning and fixing bikes on gravel on a winter day outside the container in Braddock, transporting donated bikes, tuning bikes at the church in Turtle Creek on a spring evening, and organizing bikes for weekend giveaways and sales.
“We all remember that feeling of freedom on our childhood bikes,” she said. “Being able to give a child that moment, while at the same time saving a bike from a landfill, is fantastic.
“At the end of a day, our hands are always dirty, and we’re smiling.”
Marie Pagnotta, 33, of O’Hara, turned to Red Lantern when looking for a bike to ride in her neighborhood during the pandemic.
“I am grateful Red Lantern not only had one in stock, but [also] the mechanics refurbished it because I would have no idea where to begin,” she said. “I love that my money gives back to the community and benefits the environment.
“I can’t wait for their giveaway [social media] posts. I love seeing how happy and proud the kids are when they get their new bikes and helmets.”
