Northwest Bicycle Safety Council -Portland Bicycling Club

Northwest Bicycle Safety Council

Greetings, Portland Bicycling Club members. As President of Northwest Bicycle Safety Council, I periodically like to keep you informed of the status of NWBSC. Historically, PBC (formerly known as Portland Wheelmen Touring Club) has generously donated to our organization to help us buy helmets. With your assistance, NWBSC has placed over 17,000 helmets on heads over the years. We have NEVER charged for the helmets.

Pursuant to our mission statement, we are an organization that promotes safety and harmony between cyclists, and works to strengthen our community and families through cycling-related programs and events. This year we have donated helmets to Bikes 4 Humanity and attended the Tualatin Hills Parks and Recreation’s Party in the Park fitting new helmets on the young triathletes and making certain that already owned helmets fit properly on heads of attendees. We will donate helmets for Scooping with the Sheriff and be present at Bike Beaverton to fit and provide helmets. We will be taking a load of helmets down to Junction City for donation and fitting (our own Bruce Buffington is handling this for us). They are having an event called Burgers with Bob which is a community picnic to meet the police department and the chief, Bob Morris. They reached out to us for helmets. We plan to leave behind a few extra so officers can carry helmets with them in case they see a need while out on the streets. Throughout the year school representatives contact us when they have students riding their bikes without helmets and no resources to obtain one. Ideally, someone from NWBSC goes to the school and not only gives the helmets to the students but fits them properly as well.

Additionally, we have a long-running television show called Cycology Today which airs live on the second Tuesday of each month through Tualatin Valley Community Television. There are many reruns and it is also accessible on YouTube. Guests and themes in 2019 have included Yashar Vasef from Community Cycling Center; Rachel Saathoff talking about her journey into cycling and doing Seattle to Portland (she gave our club a good plug); Rachel was on a few months later with some young people she trained to ride Reach the Beach; Bridget Hildreth sharing her passion for mountain bike riding; and most recently we had Debra Rhea and Lisa Howlett from the MeetUp group Ladies Let’s Ride encouraging women to ride bikes.

We are an all-volunteer organization, and our small group of volunteers is diminishing – growing older, moving away, etc. The core group that remains is devoted to our cause, but they are unable to maintain the vigor necessary to best represent our organization.

I have approached the board of PBC and want to present to the club members the possibility of the bike club assuming the above-referenced activities and making these their own. NWBSC’s origins are from PBC. We have run with it for many years and want to hand it over to a group that is willing and able to protect the reputation we have carefully developed under the guidance of Bruce Buffington.

Please note that NWBSC intends to properly dissolve and transfer assets to, hopefully, PBC, including any remaining helmets, a Ford van and cash. There is crossover of volunteers between the two organizations to facilitate a seamless transition.

Please give this serious thought and consider how such an opportunity might benefit PBC and increase its presence in the community and help PBC meet the criteria of being a 501(c)(3) organization. While Portland Bicycling Club pursues a new event to promote itself as a bike club, this new possibility provides a wonderful safety focus and public-spirited image to our club.

 

Ann Morrow, President of Northwest Bicycle Safety Council