LPSO accepting bikes for giveaway

Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Department is now accepting donated bicycles and bicycle requests for its annual Holiday Bike Give-a-way program.

“We are proud to protect and serve our community on a daily basis, but we look forward to doing something extra special for our local families during the holiday season,” Sheriff Craig Webre said. “And we can always use some additional help.”

Webre started the bike give-a-way program in 1994 because he believed the children in the community could benefit more from the bikes by riding them around, than the bikes sitting in storage getting rusty and old.

“He [Webre] saw that the confiscated bicycles were taking up too much space at the sheriff’s department warehouse and said it was a shame for those bikes to be sitting there doing nothing,” said department spokesman Larry Weidel.

The program is being initiated through the sheriff department’s non-profit organization called Law Enforcement Scout program.

Along with deputies and members from the scout program, Weidel said the bicycles are delivered to their new homes one week before Christmas.

According to the spokesperson for the Lafourche Sheriff’s Department, many hours of man power and hard work have been put into refurbishing of the bicycles. Local residents that are familiar with the program will donate fairly good bikes to be worked on by parish inmates.

The sheriff said, unfortunately, the agency receives more bike requests than they can accommodate, however they try to help as many children as they can. Parish schools and local organizations contact the department all year long.

“In addition, we work with local the Christmas Angel Tree program, the Thibodaux Christmas Toy Drive, Lafourche parish schoolteachers, parish ministers and parish social workers to gather names of children who need a bikes,” Weidel said.

The public information officer said before the bikes can be given away, they would have to legally advertise the bikes in the newspaper, so the prior owners can come claim the bikes.

With the assistance from individuals and businesses in the community more than 200 bikes were delivered to the doorsteps of happy children throughout the parish this past Christmas. He said an additional 50 bikes were sent to Grand Isle and surrounding parishes after the disastrous effects of Hurricane Katrina and Rita.

“We hope to provide holiday cheer again this year to the needy and deserving families in our area,” the sheriff said.

To donate a bicycle to the program, please contact Larry Weidel at 985-632-5843 or simply drop off the bike at any of the parish sheriff’s offices.

The bicycles must be in good working order and the request must include the child’s name, age, gender, address and phone number, and a brief description of the circumstances, which qualifies the child for the program.