Local News

Sweet ride

Local children take a turn around ballpark on new adaptive bikes

When Claysburg resident Katie Walk was notified that her 5-year-old daughter Baylee was approved to receive both an adaptive bike and stroller through Variety Pittsburgh, she was relieved.

"Financially, I know they're pretty expensive, so I knew it wasn't an option," Walk said of buying the equipment herself.

Baylee was one of nine children who received nine adaptive bikes and four adaptive strollers before the Altoona Curve's game on Thursday. The kids -- from Blair, Cambria and Somerset counties -- then got the opportunity to try out their new equipment by riding them in a pre-game parade along the side of PNG Field.

"I think it's generous and it's amazing for the kids," Walk said.

Baylee has hypotonia, or "really low muscle tone," so she wasn't able to use a regular bike. Walker said their family would often go to the park to ride bikes and would include Baylee by having one parent stay with her on the swings while the other went riding with Baylee's sister.

"Now she gets to ride bikes with us," Walk said. "She was ecstatic. I can push her, it has bigger pedals and lower resistance."

Baylee's physical therapist, through the AIU8, recommended applying for the bike and stroller through Variety Pittsburgh's My Bike Program, a suggestion that the physical therapist for Patton resident Benjamin Wolfe made to his mom, Emily Wolfe.

"She suggested this could be helpful for him," Wolfe said.

Wolfe said the family was "very excited" when they heard Benjamin was approved for the bike.

"We were very excited to know he could have fit physical therapy now," Wolfe said of her son receiving the bike.

At 4 years old, he has spastic diplegia cerebral palsey, which causes low muscle tone in his lower core, hips and legs, making it harder for him to walk, Wolfe said.

"I think (nonprofits are) a great fill-in for those in-between things you need but insurance won't cover and you have to figure out how to pay for," Wolfe said.

That was why Adam Jones and his wife, Gabreanna Moskey, put off buying a new stroller for their 5-year-old son Mark Jones as long as possible. It took them two years to physically receive their old stroller "right after COVID," while it took Variety Pittsburgh about five months to get the one they were presented with on Thursday, Moskey said.

"With this new one, he can be transported to and from school, and it has a bigger table on the front for his food," Jones said of the stroller, then turned to his son's bike. "And this is his first bike ever."

Moskey said Mark has core muscle issues, so they're hoping that having the bike will help. It will also help him bond with his two-year-old brother, Andrew.

"It'll give his brother a reason to chase him around for once instead of him chasing his brother around," Jones said.

When asked for their opinion on this type of charity, Jones said he couldn't give them enough credit.

"They definitely care for the kids," Jones said. "Mark definitely loved everyone in that group. I can't recommend them enough."

Variety Pittsburgh CEO Tom Baker said the donated bikes and strollers were "sponsored by the Altoona Curve Charities, Hidden Valley Foundation, 1889 Foundation and AJ & Sigismunda Palumbo Charitable Trust -- among many other donors."

Altoona Curve General Manager Nate Bowen said they were proud to partner with Variety's My Bike Program and to host the donation of the adaptive bikes and strollers for local children with disabilities, noting that the grant window for Altoona Curve Charities will open again in October.

"The Variety My Bike Program is one of the nonprofits who received a grant from Altoona Curve Charities in the last year, and we're so thrilled to see the direct impact that program has in our local community," Bowen said. "Variety provides life-changing mobility and communication equipment to ensure our most vulnerable kids are no longer left out, left behind, or excluded. Most importantly, it empowers children with disabilities to have typical childhood experiences that are so valuable."

Baker said that, while they had been "preparing for a couple months," "seeing everyone come together and seeing the kids actually on their bikes" was "the best moment there is."

"That's what it's all about, the sense of happiness that it's bringing tonight," Baker said. "Not everyone gets to be in a parade on a baseball field at some point in their life. So this is a pretty cool kind of bucket list item, I think, for the kids as well too."

Variety is accepting new applications, and families can apply to any or all three of its programs if they are eligible and their child can benefit, including Variety's My Bike Program, My Stroller Program and My Voice Program. Interested families can visit www.varietypittsburgh.org/applynow to apply or contact the Variety office directly by phone 724-933-0460 or email info@varietypittsburgh.org.

Variety is also in constant need of support, and any amount given makes a difference (www.varietypittsburgh.org/donate).

Mirror Staff Writer Rachel Foor is at 814-946-7458.