Hear from Wilber, Edwin, & Adonis

Wilber, 16, William Allen High School: I am a Youth Apprentice at Bike Works. I help kids repair their bikes in Earn a Bike. I give out snacks, and I play games with the kids. I also keep the bikes organized and clean the shop. 

Edwin, 18, Northampton Community College: I am in my first semester at NCC, studying automotive technology. I also work at Bike Works, where I teach Junior Earn a Bike and also help in Earn a Bike. 

Adonis, Franklin Park Program Manager: I first came to Community Bike Works when I was growing up in the Franklin Park neighborhood—I did Earn a Bike at least two times. I moved out of Franklin Park for a few years, but now I live here again. As Program Manager, I oversee Earn a Bike, Youth Leadership, and other programs at our Franklin Park location, and I support the cycling programs across our three sites. 

Wilber: One day I was walking in front of the Franklin Park bike shop and Edwin asked if I wanted to join the class. I had already done Junior Earn a Bike at school. I liked the bike Edwin had and that motivated me to join. Once I was in Earn a Bike, Edwin came to my table and said, do you know Spanish? 

Edwin: From that day on, we just started kicking it. We started talking more. 

Adonis: When there is more than one Spanish speaker in a class, it becomes a fast friendship. 

Edwin: We got a lot closer at the Youth Bike Summit. Whenever we would come out of our dorm rooms, we would see each other in the hallways and talk. 

Wilber: At first I was nervous at the Youth Bike Summit, and then I started talking more to Edwin. He was talking the real stuff. 

Edwin: We talked about school, friendships. I encouraged him to volunteer at Bike Works. 

Wilber: The friendship changed my life, not going to lie. Right now I’d be playing video games and that kind of stuff. 

Edwin: I see Wilber like a little brother. At that time, honestly, he was a little shy about his English, and that’s why he was shy about volunteering.

Adonis: I remember we talked about how Edwin would be graduating and that we would have an opening for a Youth Apprentice. And I can definitely see that that’s when Wilber started coming around more and volunteering. Wilber, I told you that you didn’t have to be here volunteering every day, and yet you came every day. 

Edwin: Bike Works connected me to two mentors who worked with me one-on-one: Ms. Melanie and Ms. Diana. When I first started having mentors, I wasn’t planning on going to college. I was planning on taking a gap year, saving money, and then pursuing a career. They let me know about FAFSA and other government assistance so it would be a lot easier on me. If I could go to college, I wanted to, especially for automotive technology. Ms. Diana took me to the placement test, helped me meet with my advisers, and helped me get my driver’s permit. 

To be honest, I was pretty happy to get my college acceptance letter. I showed it to my mother and my Abuela and they were so happy. Now we have to see Wilber through it. So I started talking to him about his plans. 

Wilber: We started talking about LCTI. I didn’t understand how to apply. So I asked Edwin and Ms. Diana to help me fill out the application. The next day, Edwin talked to Ms. Diana about having a meeting to help me apply. 

Adonis: Edwin, you helped Wilber find out what he wants to do. You are literally duplicating the process we used with you to help him. 

Wilber: It was hard to get into a program at LCTI, because they told me all the programs I wanted were filled. But then I sat down with Edwin and Ms. Diana and wrote a cover letter. It feels good to be in the program I want to be in—heavy machinery. When I graduate, I’ll be able to operate any machine. 

Adonis: It speaks to the mission of what we are here for: Teaching life lessons through bikes. Most kids start here just to get a bike. Then someone like Edwin shows initiative, then Wilber will start doing the same. It’s very gratifying being able to see youth put their best foot forward and work with a mentor to help elevate their life into something, then use what they learned to help someone else. It’s like I say, “Reach one, then teach one.”

Edwin: In the future, I’ll probably be working at an auto shop, and maybe still volunteering at Bike Works, doing stuff like Youth Leadership. I like to keep active in the community. Meeting with the City about where trees should be planted, or where there should be more lights around here, how to improve Franklin Park—I like stuff like that.

Wilber: I want to have a good life, working a heavy equipment job. If I see kids struggling, I’m going to help them. I know what is right and wrong, and I had the same experience when I was young. 

Edwin: Wilber is already doing the mentor stuff. We both talk to other students here about their future. 

Adonis: I feel like Bike Works is the closest we’ve ever been to having a real youth-led bike shop. [Program Instructor] José just turned 21, and he’s a pillar of Bike Works. He was a student here and now he teaches Earn a Bike, leads Drop-in, and runs our community bike shop. And Edwin, Wilber—you both are already leaders. I think in life you will both be coaches who can tell youth good stuff and hard stuff. At Bike Works, you build a relationship with one student, and then that student will teach something to someone else. It all comes full circle.