Pedals with purpose
Trips for Kids Charlotte uses its Re-Cyclery bike shop and youth programs to recycle bikes, teach skills and build community through cycling
The following article appeared in the Aug. 6, 2025, edition of The Charlotte Ledger, an e-newsletter with smart and original local news for Charlotte. We offer free and paid subscription plans. More info here.
Charity spotlight: Trips for Kids creates community one bike at a time
Trips for Kids Charlotte operates multiple programs that provide free bike access, repairs and safety lessons to children in the community. (Photo courtesy of Trips for Kids)
by Reid Heaton
For 25 years, Trips for Kids Charlotte has built community through cycling — from youth programs and events to its Re-Cyclery bike shop. The organization uses bikes to create community, provide bike access for those in need and promote a more sustainable future.
At the heart of the nonprofit’s work is its bike shop, called the Re-Cyclery, located on Atando Avenue outside of NoDa. The Re-Cyclery serves as a community hub where people can take repair classes or get their bikes serviced. The shop also refurbishes and resells donated bikes.
Last year, 94,000 pounds of metal bike materials were recycled and turned into 1,768 bikes that went back into the community. The shop serves as the main source of financial support for the organization.
Trips for Kids also operates multiple programs, like its Ride program, which offers youth mountain biking every other Saturday from March to October, and its Earn-a-Bike program, which teaches children ages 9 to 16 about bike safety, handling and maintenance in a six-hour course. Upon completion, each participant earns a helmet, a light set, a lock and a bike.
And for its Free Bike Repair program, Trips for Kids sets up a free repair stand at the North End Farmers Market.
“I think [the free bike repair program] is something we want to expand,” Executive Director Eric Supil said. “We're really excited folks can come to farmers markets where they can find healthy food, but also get their bikes serviced and connect those two aspects of sustainability. ”
In the future, Trips for Kids hopes to expand its trade skills teaching. The Re-Cyclery has classroom space, and Supil and his crew have already created a STEM curriculum and found youth who are interested.
“I think that's the next step of the Re-Cyclery — to grow the next generation of mechanics,” Supil said. “Some of our kids go on and do mechanics and become engineers. They become all sorts of things, like architects, electrical engineers and things like that. But I think it's really a great thing to dive into the skill trade.”
Reid Heaton is an intern for The Charlotte Ledger. He recently graduated from Myers Park High School and is an incoming freshman at Washington and Lee University in Virginia.
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