Shifting gears for good: Local nonprofit provides free bikes for kids

BY KAYLA PILLOFF

“Once you learn how to ride a bike, you never forget”: This is a quote that holds true to almost all. And thanks to local nonprofit Kids On Bikes, children in Montgomery County have the ability to not only learn the skill but have their very own bike at no cost.
The organization was started by QO alumnus Robb Hampton three years ago during the pandemic. Hampton—who graduated from Quince Orchard in 1993 and whose daughter is currently a QO freshmen—has had a longstanding relationship with biking, whether through being a bike messenger or racer. He says his mission is “every kid gets a bike no matter what… regardless of grades or work.”
Like many others, Hampton was unfortunately let go from his job due to the pandemic. However, he knew he “wanted to do something with bikes because I’ve always loved [them],” he said.
The spark for the organization also happened during the pandemic, when many kids would go to their schools to get food for their family as a part of the Free and Reduced Meal plan. After getting contacted by the Ridgeview Parents Teachers Student Association, and hearing about students “relying on school for food, I was like, ‘Yeah, man, lets make some connections.’” This was what got the gears going for Kids on Bikes.
Hampton reached out to the community through local Facebook groups and, as he put it, “went around town gathering bikes, putting them in my garage, fixing them and then distributing them to kids directly.”
As many know, the pandemic was a tough time for both children and parents alike. These free bikes provided students a way to get to the meal distribution sites, and was proven to be extremely rewarding for both Hampton and the community.
Hampton had something, and within the first couple of months he had given away hundreds of bikes, as well as got featured on the news. “People were excited,” Hampton said. He officially started Kids on Bikes that October of 2020.
One of Hampton’s favorite memories he recounts is when he had given around 100 bikes to a community. Around a year later, he visited the same neighborhood for a bike safety program and, he said, “80% of the kids that got a bike came back.” The joy of seeing all the kids with the bikes he had repaired made him “so glad… they still have the bikes and they’re not in a gut somewhere.”
Fast forward three years, his passion benefits hundreds of children in the local community, who get to experience the joy of cruising in their neighborhood, or biking to their friend’s house. In the midst of changing times with technology and new gadgets, the simple art of biking is here to stay.
While he has no official current count, Hampton says he has distributed at least 500 bikes in the last three years.
Any QO students interested in volunteer work can also help be a part of the process, through getting bikes, helping to repair them, and giving them to Hampton to distribute. If you have bikes you are willing to donate or are interested in earning SSL hours, you can contact Robb Hampton at kidsonbicycles@gmail.com.