LYNN — St. Mary’s High School partnered with Northeast Arc Autism Support Center to host the 18th annual Bike Clinic Thursday afternoon to bolster spirits and teach kids how to safely ride bikes.
Children and their parents were welcomed to gather outside the high school with an impromptu track outlined by plastic cones, while volunteers and high school students offered to give the kids some support as they took laps around the track.
Program Director for Northeast Arc, Nancy Lucier, talked about the impact that she hopes families took away from the event.
“This is the 18th annual clinic that we have at the Autism Support Center, and it’s an amazing event,” Lucier said. “We end up teaching children how to ride a bike, it’s very exciting for them.”
Lucier said the support center serves the whole of Northeastern Massachusetts. “We empower families, we’re a children’s center, so children from birth to twenty-two years old are our primary focus,” she said. “It’s just a great event, we have a lot of great volunteers.”
She added that over 20 young “riders” signed up to participate in the event, and that she hopes families take away a “sense of community” from the day. “Getting their child out into the community, having fun… I just think it’s a win-win for the volunteers, the families and children.”
Chantha Som, a mother of one of the young riders, said she was pulled toward the event after seeing it on Facebook.
“I just thought it was a great program when I saw it on Facebook, and my kids are still used to training wheels, so I thought this would be great to get them with mentors and assistance,” Som said.
Director of Volunteer Services for Northeast Arc, Suzanne Ryan, spoke about how she’s seen the event positively affect the community.
“What I am totally grateful for are all the volunteers that we had over the years, but especially this year with the ones we have at St. Mary’s,” Ryan said. “I live in Lynn, and I’m very proud that we’re here and doing the bike clinic at the high school — I should also give a big shoutout to Deidre Foley, for helping coordinate everything, so it’s really a big deal.”
A central element in the organized event is Rachel’s Challenge — a program started in 2007 in recognition of Rachel Joy Scott, the first victim of the Columbine shooting in 1999 — and has grown into the school’s most active club, with it also being the longest running chapter in the Northeast.
“Saint Mary’s and Rachel’s Challenge are very excited and pleased to be able to host this event today. It’s nice to work with the community and give back to the community that has given us so much,” Associate Head of Schools David Angeramo said. “And it’s nice to see students interacting with other people in the community, and just using their gifts to help out.”
Deidre Foley, one of the teachers at the high school, was particularly moved by all the dedication and collaboration that went into the event.
“I’m really excited that we could bring this event to Saint Mary’s. We’ve been excited to partner with Arc and bring this event here for our students so they can experience working with other students. I feel like this is really important for us.”
