Valley nonprofit collects, refurbishes bikes for kids

PHOENIX (KSAZ) - A new start-up charity is giving kids the chance to get a free bike.

It all started when Bob Mandel saw a little girl ask her mom for a bike in a Walmart.

"Her mother with love and sadness in her expression said, 'No, not now honey, I can't afford this now,' and she let go of the bike and took her mom's hand and I saw her head drop and she walked away," he said. "That killed me."

Mandel started a 501 (c) and named it Bob's Bikes, where he collects used bikes, refurbishes them and gives them to children in need at various homes and schools.

"You get that look of bewilderment and ecstatic smile and, 'Oh, wow,' and he jumps off the bike and he takes off and I don't know how to explain it," Mandel said. "Kids are magic."

Now, Bob needs your help. He says he desperately needs a place to work out of to make the nonprofit benefit as many kids as possible.

"We don't have any place to work out of, we need more volunteers, we need more bikes, we need more people," he said.

Bob says he's looking for volunteers with a specialty in bikes, and a social media guru.

If you'd like to help, you can send Bob an email.