Green Chile Bike Bank

The day is almost here!

This Thursday night come join us at our friends The Walter Brewing Company for a fun evening in support of GCBB’s work to serve the transportation- and bike-related needs of Puebloans in poverty.

Meet at 6, no-drop supported ride rolls out at 6:30 and will include a stop at the Bike Bank for quick tours. Return to Walter’s about 7:15 for games & prizes, baked goods, bike raffle, silent auction and GCBB merch for sale (stickers, new t-shirts, totes, socks).

Please bring cash or check, or we accept Venmo – no cards at this time.

Steel City Café and Walter’s will both be donating a portion of their proceeds – come hungry and thirsty to support these local businesses who support the community’s needs!

This is one of two fundraisers we hold each year. We don’t hit the community up for money much because we’re too busy helping build/rebuild bikes for those in need. We work hard on this mission, so don’t mind asking that you help make this one a success!

Thanks!

-The GCBB Team

The weather has turned the corner and we are back into biking season! Well, some of us bike all year long, but now it’s just more pleasant. Some Spring updates from the Bike Bank:

Fundraiser

• Fundraiser coming Thursday June 1st in conjunction with the Cruisin’ Pueblo ride at Walter’s. Meet at 6pm, ride goes at 6:30, back to Walter’s by about 7:15 for games, prizes, bike raffle, silent auction on mystery boxes (???), gourmet cupcakes, and GCBB merch all available for donation. Please bring cash or check, or we can do Venmo – no cards yet. We’ll have GCBB T-shirts again with a new design (and some bigger sizes). Steel City Café will be onsite and they along with Walter’s will be donating a portion of proceeds from sales that night. Come support small businesses who support the community!

GCBI

• We are most of the way through the Green Chile Bike Institute, our foundation-funded instructional program. So far 12 needful community members have worked to complete the 20-hour curriculum, earning a bike, some skills, and a $200 stipend for their efforts. A few have even returned to volunteer with us after they finished!
• We are hoping to offer one or two more class cohorts this summer, one will tentatively be a ladies-only course. If interested, call or text (719) 283 – 6039 or email greenchilebike@gmail.com

Below are some students in-progress, and our most recent graduates (with instructor Sam)!

Bike Distributions

• We continue to restore and distribute bikes to those in need. To prioritize limited volunteer time, we have dropped to just taking in requests from Puebloans who are actively homeless or unhoused. If you need a bike or want to help someone who does to get connected with us, please let us know and we’ll get you on the list – click here to request one. Below are some of the folks we’ve helped get on bikes within the past few weeks:

Donations

• In addition to monetary support for our limited but very real expenses, we can also always use restorable bikes and bike parts. A good donation candidate doesn’t need to be running/rideable or even have every single original piece, but it is tougher to restore bikes that are rusty, missing several components, or very old designs (older than mid 80’s). If you have extra bikes that could be put to good use with a new rider in need, please consider donating them to GCBB. Details here.

That’s all! Hope to see you out at Walter’s on the 1st!

-The GCBB Team

This past week we heard back from the IRS – after almost two years of being a state-recognized nonprofit corporation, we are now also federally recognized as a public charity.

Our reasons for hanging onto the in-between status of being incorporated but not tax-exempt were due to limited volunteer time and energy – organizing a board and following up on tax reporting is just more work when you’re an exempt organization, and we weren’t in a position to chase the bigger grants that would’ve made it worthwhile. Having been simply incorporated with the state, we could have a bank account, sign a lease, and receive electronic donations as an organization; that suited us then. Now with recognition as an exempt organization under section 501(c)(3), we are eligible for many more partnerships, funding opportunities, and any donor who wishes may write off the value of their donations from their personal or business income taxes.

This opens quite a few new doors, and we are excited to start knocking! Rest assured, it doesn’t change the spirit with which we serve Pueblo – we are still here for the needs of those on the margins, no matter how organized we get.

Thank you to all who’ve helped along the way!

-The GCBB Team

Bike Distributions:

501(c)(3) Tax Exemption:

We have recently applied for tax-exempt recognition from the IRS. This marks a big step for us organizationally, and we await the possibilities it opens up for us.

Green Chile Bike Institute:

The GCBI which launched mid-February has now graduated its first 2 classes of students, who completed a 20-hour curriculum including bike maintenance classes, guided volunteer shop work, and riding and repairing bikes out in the community. Major appreciation to Sam, who has instructed and coordinated the program from Day 1. Classes will continue through late spring, with a total of 6 cohorts benefiting from this grant-supported community program. Spots are still available for interested community members on a space-available basis, so please reach out with interest to greenchilebike@gmail.com

Ongoing Needs:

As the weather warms, our needs and the needs of the community for bikes and bike repair services increase. So, we ask the following:

1. If you have bikes that need a new home when you’re spring cleaning, please consider donating them to GCBB to restore and pass on to someone in need. Donations of repairable bikes are always welcome!
2. If you have funds that are itching to be employed toward creating a kinder, gentler world, consider GCBB as a way to make that happen. We take no salaries from our donations, every last bit of it goes to operations expenses – parts, tools, components, and rent for our workshop. We would be glad for whatever you may be able to give to support the Pueblo community through our work.
3. Consider coming out to our Spring Fundraiser, evening of Thursday June 1st, at Walter’s Brewing. We will have GCBB merch for donation, a very nice bike and repair stand for raffle, treats and a silent auction. It will be a chance to have fun in celebration of all that our students, volunteers, and supporting community have put into the project.

Thanks for reading this far! And for being involved in the ways you are able.

-The GCBB volunteers

These are some of the Puebloans we’ve been able to recently serve with your support:

GCBB is excited to announce our newest project, the Green Chile Bike Institute!

We have been granted funding by the wonderful KRD Foundation (check them out!) to conduct a skills- and community-building educational program. Read on to find out more!

Ok, sounds interesting, what’s it all about?

Course participants will have the opportunity to build their own bike and receive a $200 stipend as well as a Certificate of Completion for the following 20 hour curriculum:

3 2-hour Bike Maintenance and Building Classes (taught by a professionally-trained mechanic/instructor)

3 3-hour Supervised Shop Nights, working with our volunteer mechanics on restorations, including a bike of their choice for themself or a loved one

5 hours of riding in the community, with 2 repairs completed out and around Pueblo and visits to a local bike shop as well as one of the community repair stations.

Eligibility criteria for the course are the same as for our bike recipients. Those can be found here.

Our hope is that anyone completing the course can use the skills, confidence, community and bike they’ve built to go on to whatever opportunity is next for them, with the whole support of the GCBB team behind them.

We are recruiting participants now, so please contact us if interested!

Above are some of our recent bike recipients.

This sounds great, but I’m not eligible. Is there a way I can participate?

Interested community members not eligible under those criteria can take the course series and receive a certificate (no stipend) on a space-available basis. At this time we are only able to accommodate participants ages 18+. Please contact us to find out more! greenchilebike@gmail.com

I don’t have the time to participate or volunteer, but is there a way I can help?

Yes! We can still use donations of partial or complete bikes as well as tools, components, and accessories. Financial support is also welcomed, as it helps us to focus on work directly with those in need rather than fundraising.

We are always looking especially for 80s, 90s and 2000s mountain bikes or cruisers with 26″ wheels, as these are great candidates for rebuilds. While we appreciate generosity in all its forms, we have limited volunteer energy, so please ensure donations are repairable – a bit of rust or dirt, missing pieces and parts, or worn tires are fine, but very old frames, road bikes, and bent or damaged bikes are not as useful.

Donations can be dropped off at Great Divide during business hours at 4th and Santa Fe.

Thank you! We can’t wait to update you on our first couple cohorts completing the GCBI!

-The GCBB volunteers

Save the date – Thursday October 27th. Meet for a short (costumed!) ride @ 5:30, ride leaves 6pm. Return to Walter’s for more fun, costume contest, raffle prizes and a good cause!

Come on out for our Spring Fundraiser in conjunction with Cruisin’ Pueblo and our friends at Walter’s Brewery!

6pm meet at Walter’s, 6:30 roll out for a supported, no-drop community ride, then return to Walter’s about 7:30 for music, a bike auction, bike games, and an update on GCBB’s work over the winter from the whole motley crew!

We are raising funds for shop rent, parts, locks, lights, and all the other odds and ends that help us to keep restoring and distributing bikes into the community.

GCBB merchandise (shirts, socks, stickers, etc) will be available for donation, so please bring some bills or your checkbook. We can also accept payment via PayPal /Venmo but no credit cards at this time.

Hope to see you there!

Come out and see us tomorrow Saturday the 23rd at the 2nd Annual Pueblo Classic!

GCBB will be supporting the AMR Safety Jam, working on minor repairs and instructing kids and their families in basic bike repair, safe riding, and some fun activities. Other organizations will be doing giveaways as well. FREE for all to participate!

Please also plan to join us as we ride the Classic downtown race course on Union Avenue at 12:30pm in the Mayor’s Community Ride – open to all! Great turnout last year, fun to fill up the course and get a few laps in with all kinds of bikes and bikers from around the area.

Race schedule here – there will be lots of cool cycling to watch. Please stay safe and remain out of the course boundary flagging tape. Hope to see you there – come join us for what’s shaping up to be a beautiful day!

Our workshop has been such a success that we’ve worked through our backlog of bikes this winter – this is a great problem to have, since that means they’re out in the community now, helping people get around.

That means we need you! (and your bikes)

As we get into spring cleaning season, please consider donating any bikes that are going unused. We have a continual need for adult bikes, especially mountain bikes. They are endlessly rebuildable, and provide reliable transportation for our neighbors here in Pueblo. Parts, tubes, tires and other bike-related odds and ends also help us in our mission. At this time, we do not need any children’s bikes.

Donations can be dropped off anytime during normal business hours at Great Divide on 4th and Santa Fe, or on Wednesday nights from 6-9pm at our workshop, 807 N Greenwood.

Thank you for your continued support!

-The GCBB