Inspired by the Hebrew phrase tikkun olam ("to repair the world"), Madison Park resident and Medina elementary-school teacher Lisa Rossman has set out to do just that.
During a recent medical leave, she came up with the idea of collecting bicycles for residents in Croatia, who don't have the means to pay for transportation, she said.
So far, she has collected nine bikes and has found storage in a Madrona garage for the bikes she'll receive - all by just merely asking.
MUCH HELP NEEDED
While an excited Rossman, 40, is eager to get this effort on the road, she needs bicycles parts and supplies, helmets, bike locks, boxes for shipping and money to ship them. And she will need hands to help her recondition the bikes as she assumes most will have been hidden away in people's garages.
Madison Park Hardware found two bikes that may be donated, and there are five more in Puyallup and on Vashon Island. Rossman received a mint-condition, 1980 Sekai 2300 bicycle as a donation from a neighbor, and she bought a retro Triumph three-speed bike for $20 at a Queen Anne shop.
Rossman also has approached several local bicycle shops for their help.
Madison Park's Scoop Du Jour Ice Creamery and Washington Mutual have already offered funds to start a foundation. And Rossman hopes to recruit her third-graders to help with fund-raising for the shipping and supplies and soliciting bike donations - possibly, even help with refurbishing the bikes.
CROATIAN CONNECTION
Rossman's idea stems from her vacations in Croatia, her family's homeland. There, she would visit family members on their non-motorized island of Zlarin, where bicycles are the only mode of transportation. However, Rossman met college students who couldn't afford bicycles to travel through the worst parts of the capital on their way to school despite working three jobs, she said.
Now, not only is she determined that each of her seven Croatian cousins, age 2 to 27, have a bike, but she wants to ensure that everyone there who needs a bike has access to one.
Rossman intends to send complete, refurbished bicycles (for children and adults) to her cousins and to a Boy Scouts troop in the Croatian capital of Zagreb for distribution, at a shipping cost of $50 per bike. She also plans to bring bikes with her on her return trips to Croatia.
AN ENCOURAGING EFFORT
Brian Thomas, who is donating space in his Madrona garage to store Rossman's bikes, offered his support to Rossman during their first fateful meeting several weeks ago outside the Madison Park Starbucks Coffee shop.
He had considered a similar effort, donating soccer balls to Indonesia, after his trip there in the mid-'80s, but his friends rebuffed his efforts, he said. So when Rossman told him her idea, he immediately offered his garage and advice.
"I gave her the encouragement to get over that initial hurdle...to actually accomplish [what she is setting out to do]," he said.
He also encourages others to consider giving their bicycles to Rossman's effort instead of their local charity of choice.
"It's a good time to do it," he said. With ski season approaching, he explained, many may want to clear their garage of summer recreational equipment, like their bicycles, to make room for their winter gear.
HOW TO HELP
Rossman will take monetary and bike donations outside Washington Mutual, 4020 E. Madison St., on Saturday, Oct. 6, from 10 a.m. to noon and from 5 to 6 p.m., and Sunday, Oct. 7, from 10 a.m. to noon.
Rossman assured that bicycles can be dropped off outside the bank during regular business hours and will be watched by neighboring businesses; she will pick them up as needed. The bicycles should be marked "Bikes for Croatia."
Also, Rossman is setting up a bank account for cash donations.
To volunteer or to donate bikes or money, e-mail roz8874@hotmail.com <.i>(reference "Bikes for Croatia" in the subject line).
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