Community Bikes has partnered with several organizations in the Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis to deliver two plane loads of bicycles and supplies. With severe gang and drug issues and the ninth highest murder rate per capita in the world, St. Kitts and Nevis presented an opportunity for Community Bikes to have an impact on the lives of at risk youth.
Working in partnership with the nation's cycling federation and Ministry of Youth Empowerment, and with shipping provided through a special program of the US Air Force, Community Bikes delivered nearly 100 bikes in the spring of 2012, and another 75 bikes in 2015. In response to broader needs to which we were introduced, shipments included other much needed supplies, among them hospital and school supplies and music instruments, all contributed by organizations and individuals from our central New York community.
As a direct result of this very successful initiative, both Colgate University and Hamilton College have sent student groups to St. Kitts and Nevis as a feature of their international outreach programs for students.
Community Bikes continues to seek opportunities to reach out globally where there is a need, both in St. Kitts and Nevis and beyond.
