LYNCHBURG, Va. – "I saw families last year during the school outside of the assembly and said, 'Mom those are the people that gave us those bikes,' and they said, 'We're going to get it next time,'" James Camm, co-founder of One Community One Voice, said.
And that next time could be now.
On Thursday, Bee Line Towing owner Kevin Jones and his employees, along with Camm, picked up about 20 bikes from Walmart for some of Lynchburg's deserving students.
"To give kids a chance and a goal to reach, and they get rewarded for it, and hopefully as they grow in life they'll continue to progress because of it," Jones said.
In the past year, Camm, Lynchburg police and other organizations have gone into four elementary schools giving out 64 bikes to students who have shown improvement in behavior, attendance and grades.
"It's not cheap and then, you know, reaching out to us and then taking care of that is great. It just shows we're working together as a community," Sgt. Jeff Rater said.
Without Bee Line's donation the group would not have been able to continue the program for the upcoming quarter.
"Because we need so many bikes each quarter, we want to expand, but we just need more sponsors like Beeline and Walmart to come on board and support this program," Camm said.
As the program continues to grow, so does the drive.
Teachers tell Camm the students are changing and other principals are now saying they want to see it in their schools.
"We will continue this program because the schools said they see a really great need and improvement," Camm said.
If you're interested in becoming a sponsor for BIKE (Believe In Kids Excelling) Program, contact Camm at ocovlynchburgva@gmail.com.