THE CHURCH
New Life Community Church in Carlisle, Pennsylvania
THE CHALLENGE
Some formerly incarcerated people lack reliable transportation.
ONE BIG IDEA
Offer refurbished bicycles in exchange for community service.
People in recovery and formerly incarcerated people face many challenges upon reentry into society, including the need for housing, employment and transportation.
To help remove these obstacles, New Life Community Church in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, founded LifeWorks, a nonprofit with resources for homelessness, navigating life changes, transformational housing and a bicycle ministry that bridges the gap in local public transportation.
“It had been a dream to turn these into microbusinesses, to employ people, to help people earn what they need so that there’s honor and a sense of dignity in it,” Lead Pastor Ryan Brown says.
It was determined that the most immediate need was transportation to warehouse employment opportunities outside of town. Most of these jobs are five to 15 miles away, and there are no bus routes to those areas, Brown says.
“I kept having people come to me and say they just need a bike. They just got out of prison and they need a job, but they can’t walk 20 miles a day to work,” he explains. “That’s where the idea for LifeCycle came in.”
LifeCycle, as part of LifeWorks, accepts donations of used bicycles and tools from the community, and volunteers repair any damaged bikes. The ministry distributes about 300 bikes per year, along with lights, locks and helmets for each recipient. They keep costs low by recycling parts from unusable donations. And while temperatures dip in the winter, locals still ride all year long.
To ensure there is a relational component to LifeCycle, they require recipients to earn their new bike—through community service hours either at the church or other local organizations.
“We always keep the value of the bike low,” Brown notes. “[Recipients] do anywhere from four to 10 hours of community service and get paid $10 an hour toward the cost of their bike.”
Other ministries under the LifeWorks umbrella include LifeStyle, a furniture and home goods mission; LifeHouse, which offers transitional housing along with individual growth plans; LifePath, a guide to community resources; and LifeWorks Marketplace, a thrift store.
According to Brown, LifeCycle exists to meet practical needs, but the love of Christ and relationship-building compel it.
“It is an amazing place to connect with people and live out the love, acceptance, healing and hope of Jesus,” he says. “We want to get people bikes for work, but our bigger desire is to help them heal and be a part of community.”