Nuts, bolts and bicycles are changing lives in Goshen.
One of those lives is Patrick Baiz.
"So you take this little nut driver and put it on the spokes and when you put it this way it tightens it," says Baiz as he demonstrates how to true up his bicycle wheel.
Baiz is a divorced father and a carpenter by trade. When the economy got tough, he couldn't find work and fell behind on child support. Instead of jail time the judge sentenced him to Elkhart County's Work Release program. He has a full time job now but the courts took away his drivers license so he has no way to get there.
"About 3 months ago I got a notice in the mail that they took my license. I am relying on my bike to get to work now," says Baiz.
He got his bike for free thanks to the Chain Reaction Bicycle Project.
"It is all around bicycling and encouraging people to use bicycling as an alternative mode of transportation," says Chain Reaction President Kathy Nofziger Yeakey.
The non-profit operates the Chain Reaction Bicycle Shop which sits at 113 W. Jefferson St., in Goshen.
People donate bikes and bike parts. Volunteers refurbish the bikes and then sell them for very low cost. If you can't afford to purchase a bike, like Baiz, you can take it home for free but "work" in the shop to "pay it off."
"There are so many people who for one reason or another can't drive or afford a car," says Nofziger Yeakey, "this provides a decent way to get usable transportation."
And for people like Baiz, his bike and the bike shop, are giving him a chance at a better life.
"This is my bread and butter. I rely on this big time," says Baiz as he gently taps his bike.
Thanks to his bike, Baiz is able to get to work and pay his child support.
Chain Reaction has other projects too.
Recycles is a bike powered curbside recycling pickup service. Chain Reaction Bike Project gives fair-wage employment to people who have a hard time finding or keeping a job. Those people use their bikes to pick up recycling at homes and businesses around the Goshen area.
For more information on the organization and the bike shop, you can visit the website: Chain Reaction Bicycle Project
