Earlier this month volunteers carefully fitted hundreds of children with a bike and helmet at Smith Elementary. They dedicated some extra time making sure the bike was the right size and the helmet fit securely. For many of the students this was their very first bicycle and their pride and excitement was unmistakable as they tentatively pedaled for the first time, then gained more confidence and started zooming around the playground. By the end of the event the school blacktop was swarming with joyful children riding their brand new bikes.
One Smith parent noted that the timing was a blessing because her child had previously had a bicycle, but the back wheel was recently stolen, and she didn’t know how she was going to get a new one.
This was sponsored by many including School Partners Program. 
For their first partnership activity, Callahan collaborated with Bernstein Global Wealth Management, and Wish for Wheels to donate 137 brand new bikes and helmets to Kindergarten and First Grade students at Smith. The bike-give away event was also supported by Green Fine Salad Co., LAZ Parking, ABM Janitorial and Whelan Security.
For our students, parents, teachers and school principals this project was absolutely amazing! We saw the faces of children light up when they received what for a lot of them was their first bike. We are so thankful for the partnership with Callahan and Wish for Wheels.”
– Ambar Suero, Family and Community Engagement Specialist at Smith Elementary
Learn more about School Partners Program at www.dpsfoundation.org/partner and how you can engage your business or organization in contributing to the success of DPS students.