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Bike would make boy feel a bit more free Light One Candle EDITOR'S NOTE : "Light One Candle" is an annual Mail Tribune feature that focuses on a single need of a person, family or agency during the holiday season. For information, call 776-4465 or e-mail [email protected] Putting a bike beneath this boy would be like giving him wings. That's the opinion of Rachel Griffin, program manager for the Youth Diagnostic Shelter run by Community Works. At age 12, the boy is living at the shelter as he moves from one foster care home to another. His life so far has included abuse, neglect and frequent moves, which all seem easier to handle if he's on wheels. "Some of the kids are allowed to take bikes out and ride alone," Griffin says. "It gives them some feeling of freedom, that's a major part of it." The 12-year-old is one of 10 kids ages 10 to 17 housed at the Phoenix shelter. They're all allowed to ride bikes, if they have them, along the Bear Creek Greenway path and through orchards, where owners have granted permission. The thing is, they have no bikes to ride. "All of our bikes here at the shelter are in various stages of disrepair," says Griffin. "We have all these skeletons but none that work." The biggest need is for solid, sturdy mountain-style bikes and equipment with which to repair them, she says. The bikes give kids a way to burn off energy and a way to connect with each other, Griffin says. "They take pride in working with the bikes, in preparing them. When they get to work with tools, there's an incredible amount of sharing going on," she says. "If we had bikes, we'd use them three times a week, easily." Donations of bikes or repair kits can be delivered to the shelter at 5605 S. Pacific Highway, Phoenix. For information, call Community Works at 779-2393. Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA