Where to donate used or new bicycles or bike accessories in Monterey County

Imagine you need to get to school or work without the expense of gas or bus fare. A bike or bike-and-ride could be a great solution, if only you had a bicycle and essential bike accessories. Or imagine seeing others riding the beautiful Monterey Bay Sanctuary Scenic Trail and wishing you could too—if only you had a bike!

Used or new bicycles as well as accessories such as bike locks, lights, helmets, pumps, or other bike gear are needed by youth and adults without these items right here in Monterey County. Gift cards to local bike shops can also be donated.

Who to contact:

1. Bicycling Monterey. Please phone us to find out about any current needs for contributions of used or new bicycles, helmets, lights, locks, or other bike accessories for Bicycling Monterey projects.

2. Pueblo Del Mar family recovery community, a program of Sun Street Centers. To donate a used or new bike or accessories, call Clyde or Tiera at (831) 582-9461. For some history, see https://sunstreetcenters.org/news-events/pueblo-del-mar-family-recovery-community-celebrates-10-years-of-recovery-service/

3. Casa de Noche Buena: A Homeless Shelter for Women and Families with Children, a program of Community Human Services. They can sometimes use donations of new or used bikes or accessories. Call Elsa, (831) 867-8200. About Casa de Noche Buena: https://chservices.org/homelessness/casa-de-noche-buena/

4. Greenfield Recreation Department would appreciate donations of some balance bikes for the earliest beginners in their learn to ride classes. Contact Nathalie Gomez, recreation activities leader, by phone, 831-304-0150 or email ngomez@ci.greenfield.ca.us. To learn more about their classes, click here.

5. Greenfield Community Science Workshop. Salinas Valley bicycle repair workshops in Chualar, Greenfield, Gonzales, King City, San Ardo, San Lucas, and Soledad have been organized by GCSW. GCSW continues to accept donations of used bikes to give to workshop participants who don’t have a bike. Participants are  taught some bike maintenance/repair skills, so if your bike is in good but not perfect condition (needs some maintenance), GCSW is usually an appropriate recipient for your bike. To inquire, please call or text (831) 233-8335.

6. Interim, Inc. Interim welcomes donations of good used bikes for use by Interim residents, as well as bike locks, helmets, and lights. Phone Jocelyn or Jenny, (831) 649-4522. Interim provides affordable housing and support for adults with mental illness. Interim’s residents are all low-income adults with psychiatric disabilities. Many don’t drive or don’t have cars, so they use bikes to get to the store, to work, to doctor appointments, and to visit friends. Learn more about Interim: https://www.interiminc.org –  PLEASE NOTE: If the bike you have to donate needs some maintenance, please first contact Gears 4 Good, and ask that after they fix up the bike, they pass it along to Interim. (Gears 4 Good has passed along numerous bikes to Interim.) http://www.torogrind.com/gears4good/

7. Safe Place for Youth sometimes needs donations of used or new bicycles, bike helmets, locks, and lights. Contact Jasmin, (831) 373-4421.  Learn more about Safe Place: https://chservices.org/homelessness/safe-place/ 

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This post was first published December 2, 2011 and the info below has not been updated in its entirety. Phone Bicycling Monterey, or check directly with the resources referred to, and ask what current needs they may have.

Gears 4 Good. “Recycled Bicycles for Those Who Need a Ride.” Steve Benes formed Gears 4 Good as a 501(3)(c) nonprofit, effective March 2013, to provide bicycles for people who cannot afford to purchase one. This provides transportation to work, school, and other destinations. Visit http://www.gears4good.com/ and email Steve with your questions or offers to lend a hand. Note: In 2018, Steve’s schedule made it necessary to take a break from accepting used bikes for Gears 4 Good—he’d received so many bicycles that he didn’t have time to work on them all! But in 2019, he’s “back in the saddle,” and the Salinas High Cowboys are boosting the Gears 4 Good efforts with a fundraiser. See April 5, 2019 story by Ayrton Ostly in the Californian, “Salinas high school cyclists hit the trails for 24 hours, all in the name of a good cause.” Steve collects bikes that require work before they can be donated to those in need, and he also appreciates donations of tires, tubes, chains, and cables. Donating effective used or new bike locks that he could provide with the bikes would be welcome too. Another need was that Steve’s garage was running out of room, and he was looking for donated shop space; check with Steve for updates.

Thanks @bikemonterey for your help finding bikes for our clients! Any donated bikes that come in will be put to GREAT use!

— Interim, Inc. (@InterimInc) November 28, 2012

https://www.instagram.com/p/3iQiLsqg2U/

https://www.instagram.com/p/BII0sbLB3_7/

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Thanks to Luke Shenefield for donating five bicycles to Safe Place in response to Bicycling Monterey’s request, which originally appeared on this site in December 2010.  You’ll often see Luke and his wife, AnnMarie, and their children on bikes about town. Luke is a veteran cyclist of Team Roaring Mouse.

Below: Truckload of bikes at First Presbyterian Church, Monterey, collected as part of a past community outreach project of the church, facilitated by FPC member the late John Clark. (As of August 2022, that FPC project is no longer active.)

 

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Bikes for runaway and homeless youth

Christian Daniels, the bell-ringer pictured below, knows that many people in Monterey County don’t have bicycles or bike accessories. 

Sure, there are lots of fortunate youth who not only have their own bicycles, they also have solid families they can rely on for back-up transportation.  And there are also youth here who, for whatever reason,  don’ t have a parent or guardian they can call on for a ride. For such youth, a bicycle can especially be a godsend! Consider donating a new or used bike to Safe Place. Visit the Safe Place website to learn how they serve local youth:  http://www.chservices.org/youth_services/youthservices.html Perhaps you’ve read about them in Monterey County Weekly stories, e.g., https://www.montereycountyweekly.com/news/cover/homeless-youth-look-for-and-find-a-safe-place-in-monterey/article_e46a480c-a8fa-507e-9e9d-768a8577a690.html

By the way, as Christian can attest:  The best parking at the Monterey Post Office is for people who bike; it’s right at the front door!  Many PO patrons who come by car can find it challenging to park at busy times.  As you can see (photo above) from the long line stretching into the lobby, there were many people at the PO on this day!

Lots of bike accessories are available at local bike shops. Local bike shops and services can also help you tune up a good used bike so it’s in reliable condition before you donate it. Here’s a list of Monterey County bicycle shops. (Photo above: inside Aquarian Bicycles, downtown Monterey, which is now closed.) 

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Portions of this post were originally published 2009-2010. Some sections have been updated, or new material added, in 2011-2023.