By Stephanie Loder
Consider Pat McGowan of Northfield one of Santa’s elves.
For the last 10 years, McGowan has repaired used bicycles in his backyard shop, then donated them at Christmas to churches and foster families.
“So many kids need a bike and they’re grateful when they get one for Christmas,” he said.
McGowan is no stranger to bicycles. He’s owned one since he was a child growing up in Galloway Township.
When his uncle passed away 30 years ago, his aunt gifted him an old Schwinn bicycle that had been sitting in her garage.
“I started collecting and restoring bikes after that,” said McGowan, the owner of Pat The Bike Man bicycle shop. “Pretty soon, people started asking me ‘Can you fix bikes?’ It just snowballed after that.”
McGowan developed an eye for finding old bicycles and the parts needed to restore them.
Many families hand down their bicycles from the oldest to youngest child, he said.
“There’s a lot of memories there in a bicycle. I restore people’s memories,” he said.
Some bicycles have been sitting in garages or sheds for years, abandoned by the children who once owned them because they grew up and learned to drive a car.
He started donating restored bicycles about 10 years ago and so far has given away more than 100.
Again this year, McGowan is repairing eight used bicycles for donation at the request of St. Joseph Church in Somers Point.
“They call me each year and anything they want, they get,” McGowan said.
Finding used pedal bicycles this year wasn’t as easy as in past years because of the popularity of e-bicycles, he said.
“E-bikes are pushing out pedal bicycles,” McGowan said. “Some kids don’t want to be caught dead on a pedal bike.”
He said it took word of mouth and some social media requests to find enough people this year willing to donate old bicycles. He was able to fulfill all of his donation requests.
Some bicycles might need a new pedal or handle grips. Others need a tire change or a new chain.
The restored bicycles are put to good use and they are appreciated.
“There are poor kids out there whose parents can’t afford one and I’ll donate a bike if I catch wind of what they need,” he said. “If they need a bike, they’re going to get one from me.”
He also learns about children who need a bike from people in his bicycle community.
“People come to me and say they are going to buy a bike for a foster family or a kid who is riding around with bald tires on his bike,” McGowan said. “That’s where I come in. I make sure they get a bike for free.”
McGowan drives his pickup truck after work to gather the bikes from peoples’ homes. He brings them back to his shop.
He doesn’t accept any cash or gifts in return for the bicycles he repairs and donates.
One year, McGowan said he received a gift card from the staff St. Joseph Church to thank him for the work.
“I turned it over to someone who was a single parent and gave the gift card to them,” he said.
McGowan said knowing he makes a difference for a child at Christmas is enough satisfaction.
“I don’t need to get anything. I’m just doing my part,” he said.
