Hornell Public Library teams up for Earth Day bike giveaway
By Andrew Harris, photos provided
Having a good bike is very important for a young person, and Larry Pelkey understands. He has been collecting, refurbishing, repairing, and giving kids free bicycles in Hornell since 2021.
The Earth Day event was another big success, twenty five more kids will have “wheels” this summer, bringing the total number of bikes that Pelkey has donated to 529!
The effort hasn’t gone unnoticed. WETM visited Pelkey recently to talk about his work:
https://www.mytwintiers.com/news-cat/local-news/a-hornell-resident-is-pedaling-change/
Hornell Public Library Director Denise Chilson was thrilled with the latest event and announced some more “bicycle” events in the future:
“The bike give-away was a success! Larry Pelkey gave away 25 bikes, Hornell Police Department did a safety lesson and we gave away about 15 take & make spoke decorating kits. Our hope is to start a weekly evening community bicycle ride to celebrate the Summer Reading Program, “All Together Now!” I’m still working out some of the details, but that’s just one of the ideas we have planned!”
Read our reporting last summer on the amazing “Bikeman” of Hornell NY:
