LeadingAge Illinois chose a charity bicycle event for their team time together at Elements at Water Street in Chicago, Illinois. Eight participants formed two competitive teams and got to work. Four completed bicycles went to the Naperville Outdoor Alliance to support a new youth bicycling program for middle school-aged kids. This group had two other options for how to spend their time and chose this one.
LeadingAge Illinois is a statewide trade association representing nonprofit providers of aging care, housing, and services across Illinois. The organization advocates for its members and the populations they serve. LeadingAge Illinois supports providers across the full continuum of aging services in the state.
LeadingAge Illinois Builds Four Bikes for the Naperville Outdoor Alliance at Charity Bike Building Event in Chicago, Illinois
Eight participants is a small group for this program. Nobody seemed to notice. The energy was high from the start. Both teams were fully locked in from the first challenge through the final minute.
What the group had going for it was intent. They did not end up at this event by default. They chose it over two other ways they could have spent their time. That choice showed up in how they worked. Every challenge was taken seriously. The two teams pushed each other to build well and build fast.
The Naperville Outdoor Alliance had a clear purpose for the bikes. Four bicycles for middle school-aged youth would go directly into a new youth bicycling program in the Naperville community. The bikes were not going into a donation pool. They were going to a program with a mission, and the group knew it. That specificity made the handoff feel different from a standard donation.
Thank you to LeadingAge Illinois for choosing a give-back experience when you had other options. And to the Naperville Outdoor Alliance, thank you for building a youth program that makes a real difference.
Want to bring a small group together with a real sense of purpose? A charity bike build gives any team that option.