Norlane resident powers recycled bicycle program

A MEMBER of the Corio Norlane Lions Club is providing a bunch of bikes to those in need, a service he has been voluntarily offering for a very long time.

John McKinnin, a member of the Corio Norlane Lions Club for the better part of the decade, has dedicated most of his life to helping the local community in any way, shape or form and he is at it once again.

A personal hobby of his that started of his own accord nine years ago when Mr McKinnin raised his hand after he found out that Geelong Grammar School was about to discard a large number of used bicycles.

In 2015, John and his son Mark started the Bike Donation Program at the Lions Club and since then have donated more than 2700 bikes to date.

“When I heard that they were going to throw away those bikes, I was one of the silly ones to raise my arm to take them off their hands and I said I will do them up,” Mr McKinnin said.

“These bikes, they were pretty knocked around, but most of the bikes were actually from overseas students who had no use for them once they returned back to their home country.”

Ever since that day, Mr McKinnin has continued to take in worn out, rusted and unused bikes, repairing each one with spare parts that he has bought.

Not only does he present the bikes to children and families in the local area, but Mr McKinnin and his Lions Club also help get the donations out to more rural parts of the state.

Towns such as Inglewood for example, situated 45 kilometres northwest of Bendigo, have received bicycles as a result of Mr McKinnin’s generosity.

A main benefactor of these old bicycles in the past have also been several Indigenous communities.

In addition to contributing to Geelong’s local Wathaurong Co-operative, bikes have also been sent as far as Horsham to aid the Co-operative that assists with the Goolum Goolum community.

“I love giving back to the community,” Mr McKinnon said.

“I have done it all my life, I have been a scout leader, a volunteer at the Fire Brigade, and I am a member of the Filipino Australian Friendship Association of Geelong too.”

Today, Mr McKinnin is a “partially” retired resident of Norlane and continues to help the Corio Norlane Lions Club where he can, particularly within the Golden Opportunity Community Shop – on top of his efforts doling out bikes to members of the greater community and delivering food parcels to those in need from the Geelong Food Bank.

If you or anyone else you know is in desperate need of a bike, you can reach John via the secretary of the Corio Norlane Lions Club or his mobile number at 0419 319 664.