USING BIKES TO CREATE A SAFE SPACE FOR STUDENTS 

Meet Daily Point of Light Award honoree Matthew Vicknair. Read his story, and nominate an outstanding volunteer or family as a Daily Point of Light.  

Matthew Vicknair is a casual biker. But he’ll occasionally ride his bicycle around town, since it’s a great way to stay healthy and see the city around him. Years ago, he became familiar with the work of a local organization that uses bikes to engage with local youth. But when he attended a nonprofit board training at his professional job more recently, he had the opportunity to meet with representatives from the same organization. Called Front Yard Bikes, the organization creates a safe space for youth to realize their intrinsic worth, while helping them learn, grow, and build. Matthew realized it would be a great opportunity to combine his personal interests with volunteer work, and never looked back. 

Three years later, Matthew has contributed hundreds of volunteer hours to Front Yard Bikes. His efforts have strengthened the organization’s financial practices and helped raise more than $80,000 to support youth programs. He dedicates approximately six to eight hours per month to his volunteer responsibilities, which range from reviewing financial statements and reporting on organizational finances to the group’s board to event planning and student mentoring. The group’s fun events, like Fall Fest, Thanksgiving Day in the Park, Trash Grand-Prix Pick-Up, and Christmas Party, all serve as a safe outlet for neighborhood kids to have fun.  

Looking forward, Front Yard Bikes has also actively engaged with other organizations.   They’re currently renovating what they call the UC Lab, serving as a home base for the nonprofits. In the long term, Matthew and the team are hoping to allow the Lab to welcome students from all four participating organizations, as well as any student who just wants to come and have a safe space to learn, grow, and build. In Matthew’s story, we see that exploring one’s personal interests is a great gateway to finding your place in volunteer work. 

It actually started when I was just a couple of years out of college. My wife told me about Front Yard Bikes, and I was early on in my career, and I really wanted to get involved, but they had limited opportunities to kind of volunteer. A couple of years later, my company had a nonprofit board training, and so I realized it was a way I could get involved. It was a day-and-a-half board training, and at the end, it was kind of like a networking event for potential board members to meet with organizations. Front Yard Bikes was one of them, and so I was like, “Oh, I’ve got to talk to them.” I talked to the representative that they had there, and it was probably a few months-long process, but I eventually ended up joining the board later that year.  

I kind of compare it to giving somebody a gift, whether it be Christmas or their birthday. It’s just like one of those warm feelings whenever you’re able to give somebody something that doesn’t even necessarily benefit you. You just get that kind of joy and happy feeling to help somebody else out and know that you’re making a greater impact than yourself.  

I’m the board treasurer. We have monthly meetings, and I attend those, and I attend the meetings with the CPA to understand my fiduciary responsibility for the organization. We have events all throughout the year. We have a Christmas party coming up soon. We have our Thanksgiving Day in the park, and our Fall Fest. We have what we call our Trash Pickup Grand Prix, which is getting all the students together and picking up trash around the city. It’s this really fun thing because you’ve never seen kids getting so excited to pick up trash. 

It’s just being around the kids. I’ve formed a pretty cool relationship with one of the students there. This one student that I’m talking about got to participate in our video, and he thought it was the coolest thing ever that he was in it. I think he thinks he’s famous. I’ve been able to go to one of his football games, and that was super cool. It’s just showing up for people that maybe don’t have a lot. Also, I won an award from the company that I work for, which is great, and I was able to give those funds to Front Hard Bikes. 

I’ve learned that it’s not all about me. I’ve learned that I have been very blessed in my own life to see the way that I’ve been given a lot of things. I’ve definitely learned that it takes more than just one person to rally people. Whenever they do see somebody doing something, that really means a lot. Other people want to come along, and so they see that you’re enjoying what you’re doing, and they want to get involved in things that they want to do.  

I think it’s really easy to point out the negative things that go on in this world. But when you step into those organizations and causes that you know help with the change that you want to see, you can do more than finger-point from the sidelines. You can step in and say you’re going to make a difference. “I may not change the world in this, but I’m going to do my part.” See where that goes.  

I think my biggest advice would be to start with your hobbies and interests. I’m not a huge biker, but it’s in the sports and healthy living realm, so that’s how Front Yard Bikes drew my attention. I was like, wait, I can also mentor youth and help other people through this? Start with your own hobbies and interests and things that you care about. For example, if you’re really into weather or coastal restoration, start by looking up organizations that maybe play a part in that.  

I really want people to learn that you don’t have to have a huge, high status, or huge credentials. Any ordinary person can get out there and make change, and it’s about whether you’re willing to put in the effort, serve your community, and make it a better place. 

Do you want to make a difference in your community like Matthew? Find local volunteer opportunities.