Boys To Men Club Hosts Bike Repair Workshop In North Mpls.
MINNEAPOLIS (WCCO) -- A north Minneapolis group of men is helping guide boys onto a healthy path in life.
On Sunday afternoon, dozens of children who live on the blocks surrounding Folwell Park got to work on donated bikes that had some minor problems.
When they were done learning to fix the bikes, the children got to ride them home to keep.
Dante Darden and his children have volunteered with church-based group Boys to Men Club since it started in 2014.
Darden believes the children are getting more than tools to fix a bike; they are getting tools for life.
"They're learning teamwork, they're learning togetherness," Darden said. "As long as you have something that gives you positive energy, or something that you can lean toward."
Nate Streeter started the group because crime was up in his neighborhood.
Streeter wanted children to have more activities to be part of.
"Some of our most exciting times from an event like this come in a week when we're driving by and we see them working on their sister's bike or one of their neighbor's bikes," Streeter said. "It's about working with the community not for it."
Kevon Robinson and Douglas Sutton have been in the club from the start.
Now entering high school, they volunteer their time to the program, which serves second through eighth-graders.
"It takes my mind off of all the negative and brings us around to help others," Robinson said.
"It kind of makes me feel better to see these little kids growing up and learning new stuff, things that they never would have probably thought about doing," Sutton said.
They hope each child will learn they have all it takes to fix anything that is broken.
Each child also got a free helmet at the Sunday event.
The group Boys to Men Club Minneapolis holds several activities throughout the year that focus on service and personal growth.
