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GPPM at almost
8
years old, is an all volunteer, and multi-denominational partnership
between St. James
United Methodist of New Tampa and
University Baptist Church. It falls under the 501c3 wing and insurance of the
University Baptist Church, which is where the bike building is located. The ministry was
officially founded in July of 1997. Its first official home was in a Sunday school
room of the As our mission expanded, we moved from the Sunday school room to two small donated portable buildings. We stored the bikes and parts in the buildings, and volunteers would work under street lights in the parking lot of the church. When it was cold, we would be cold, when it was wet, we would be wet, but we held together. People who were moved by our efforts, helped us start a building fund for a permanent building, and in December of 2002, we had our Christmas give-away, out of our new building. Others have stepped forward to help us wire in electricity, fans and lights, and we now have a wonderful facility for our volunteers to work in. As you can imagine, it is now easier to enlist volunteers for our cause. GPPM receives names of people from referral agencies and case workers. As we receive bicycles, volunteers refurbish them and a match is made for the number of children and adult bikes needed. Each new owner is notified, and on a selected Saturday morning, we meet at the church for the positive message, the safety lesson, and the give-away........You should see the smiles!Special circumstances are considered for those who work on Saturday, and a few bikes are adopted out on Tuesday or Thursday when we are working in the neighborhood. While we are working on bikes, we encourage kids from the neighborhood to join us to learn how they can fix their own bikes. While young people are around, it gives volunteers an opportunity to encourage kids to set goals, make good grades, and to be good citizens in their own community. As volunteers, we strive to make a difference in the lives of the kids we come in contact with. If you would like to get involved, or help GPPM, click here |