Volunteers build them and donate them to first graders.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) 1st grade students at Mary W. Jackson Elementary try on their new helmets as volunteers with Can’d Aid, a non-profit, hand out new bikes in Salt Lake City on Thursday, May 13, 2021.
Sixty Salt Lake City first graders were surprised Thursday with unexpected gifts: brand-new bicycles.
The two-wheelers were assembled by volunteers from Colorado-based Can’d Aid on Wednesday at Squatters Pub, then presented to kids at Mary W. Jackson Elementary at 750 W. 200 North. Along with fitted bike helmets, of course.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Volunteers with Can’d Aid, a non-profit, hand out sixty bikes to 1st grade students at Mary W. Jackson Elementary in Salt Lake City on Thursday, May 13, 2021.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Abbi Arneson, a volunteer with the non-profit Can’d Aid, helps to hand out sixty bikes to 1st grade students at Mary W. Jackson Elementary in Salt Lake City on Thursday, May 13, 2021.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Volunteers with Can’d Aid, a non-profit, hand out sixty bikes to 1st grade students at Mary W. Jackson Elementary in Salt Lake City on Thursday, May 13, 2021.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Abbi Arneson and Alex Schmidt, volunteers with the non-profit Can’d Aid, hand out sixty bikes to 1st grade students at Mary W. Jackson Elementary in Salt Lake City on Thursday, May 13, 2021.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) Alex Schmidt lines up helmets as volunteers with Can’d Aid, a non-profit, hand out sixty bikes to 1st grade students at Mary W. Jackson Elementary in Salt Lake City on Thursday, May 13, 2021.
(Trent Nelson | The Salt Lake Tribune) 1st grade students at Mary W. Jackson Elementary try on their new helmets as volunteers with Can’d Aid, a non-profit, hand out new bikes in Salt Lake City on Thursday, May 13, 2021.
It was part of Can’d Aid’s Treads + Trails program, designed to “encourage kids to opt outside.” According to the organization, children average seven hours of screen time a day, and only 1 in 5 get daily recommended amounts of exercise.
The organization has donated more than 2,000 bikes and skateboards to kids in the past year. “At a time when our nations youth are experiencing extreme levels of anxiety, depression and mental issues,” the organization said, “Can’d Aid’s programs provide healthy and active outlets for underserved and at-risk children across the country.”
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