BALLARAT bikes will soon be making the school trip much easier for some Cambodian children.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
The YMCA Recranked Recycle program donated 25 bikes to the local Bikes4Cambodia organisation on Friday, which will soon send a shipping container full to a town called Kompong Thom, about 160km of the capital Phnom Penh.
"The kids are walking seven kilometres to and from school, so this going to really help," said Bikes4Cambodia founder Daniel Wilson.
While the YMCA bikes are heading over restored, the kids will also be taught bicycle upkeep on some of the others sent over.
The container will stay in the town as a workshop.
"We could buy them new bikes for about $50, but this also about teaching them some skills," said Mr Wilson.
Mr Wilson launched the project after hearing about a program to bring in housing to the same area while in the region.
YMCA program manager Wallace Martin said the programs just lined up perfectly.
"We've got a shed full of bikes, and (Bikes4Cambodia) meets the ethos of the YMCA. It's about helping people and education," he said.
YMCA Recranked Recycled is still on the hunt for bikes, so if you've got a cobwebbed cruiser, BMX or roadie in the back shed, contact them on 5329 2800.
