Providing farmworkers with bikes for reliable transport

Bikes for Farmworkers in Niagara-on-the-Lake collects, refurbishes, repairs and sells bikes to migrant workers so they have a means to travel and meet up with friends, etc.

GateWay board member Ken Eden explains:

Every spring migrant workers arrive in our community of Niagara-on-the-Lake to work in vineyards and fruit orchards. Usually more than 1,500 come and stay for eight months. Bikes for Farmworkers (BFF) was established in 2016 to help meet their transportation needs. BFF operated from the same building as GateWay Community Church.

In 2020 BFF became an official outreach ministry of the church. It made sense because both the church and BFF were well accepted in the community. We help BFF by running Bicycle Drop-Off Donation Days when community members are invited to drop off used bikes. Church members also pick up donated bikes.

When the shop is open, we provide water and snacks. Thursday evenings seem to be the busiest days for the workers to come by and purchase bikes.

Generally, farm owners provide the workers with weekly transportation to do things like banking and grocery shopping. But bikes allow them to visit each other and travel into town for other activities.

All our bike mechanics are volunteers. We have a fully equipped shop that operates two days and one evening per week from mid-March to mid-November. The shop exclusively serves migrant farmworkers. Since opening BFF has handled over 4,000 bikes. 

All bikes are donated. Each one is given a 50-point inspection. Our mechanics service the bikes as needed to provide fully operational, safe, reliable transportation. We sell the bikes to the workers for $25. We also repair bikes for the workers when needed.

The actual cost of a refurbished bike varies depending on which parts are needed, but the $25 price works well from year to year. BFF has always been self-sustaining, and the church has never had to invest money in the shop.

Strong community support is vital. Our program runs so smoothly because of backing from our parts suppliers, the bike shop landlord and bike donors. Migrant workers are integrating well into the community year after year, and we think that is partly because of reliable transportation that gives them more freedom to enjoy themselves and build friendships.

4,000+ bikes have been handed out by Bikes for Farmworkers since they opened in 2016

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