Students surprised by bike giveaway from police

Christmas arrived early for 70 Hollister children on Saturday, Dec. 17 as Santa’s helpers — the officers of the Hollister Police Department — volunteered their time to gift each child with a brand new bicycle.

The bicycles were furnished through a grant from Turning Wheels for Kids, which has a mission of preventing childhood obesity and to support to low-income families.

Children cannot ride a bike safely without a helmet, however, and those were the second part of the gift.

Robin Lucas of Off the Chain Bikes made certain each child was instructed on the importance of using the helmet — donated by Turning Wheels for Kids — for safe bicycling.

“Every kid should have a bicycle at least once in their life,” said Hollister Police Chief David Westrick. And to make that dream come true, this is the third year the Hollister Police Department has taken part in the bike giveaway program. 

Westrick and the police department crew were ready to surprise the kids who showed up to the station, parents in tow, with a new bike.

There were plenty of youngsters with smiles on their faces. Some were seen trying their new bike out on the parking lot before it was put into a car or truck by a parent.

Community Service Officer Alexandra Oropeza checked the families in from a list previously generated before they received the bike. All of their names had been entered, and those who were randomly selected by a raffle were notified to come to the Police Department on Apollo Way to pick up their bicycle.

 “This is the one time we give back at such a large scale,” Oropeza said.

Oropeza, along with School Resource Officers Carlos Rodriguez, Juan Guevara and Theresa Aguilera, Community Services Office Patrick Kenney, PSO Anietra Gomez, Explorer Coordinator Officer Staci Esqueda and all the Hollister Police Explorers helped give the bikes away.

Many police officers from Hollister attended the Big Bike Build day, in San Jose on Dec. 3, to put the bikes together.

“Two thousand five hundred bikes were built that day,”  Westrick said.

Santa was certainly busy this year, judging by the sight of 70 bikes lined up in a room of the Hollister Police Department waiting to surprise a child.