On Saturday, June 3rd, we are inviting our neighbours in Pointe Claire and the West Island to come enjoy The Big Give 2023. In 2017, we celebrated our 50th anniversary at our current location, and we held a community BBQ with food and games, and it was a blast. And we thought, "hey, why not offer a BBQ every summer?" So in 2018 we held a community garage sale where nearby residents rented a table for 10$ to sell their household items, with 100% of the fee going to La Corde, an afterschool program that we help support in the Cloverdale area that provides breakfast, lunch and homework assistance to students in the disadvantaged neighborhood. In 2019, we joined The Big Give, a day where churches are giving freely to their community by offering a bicycle tune-up clinic and, yes, a BBQ! It's an event we've been participating since then, in one way or another.

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This year, we are offering a take-what-you-need garage sale, a BBQ lunch, and a bicycle tune-up clinic, with everything free. No cost, no strings. Life has been given freely to every single person, and the gift of salvation in Jesus is offered to us freely by God. It was excruciatingly costly for Him as Jesus, His Son, went to the cross. But for us, He invites us to come enjoy a life-giving meal that we didn't earn: 

“Come, all you who are thirsty,
   come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
   come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
   without money and without cost.
2 Why spend money on what is not bread,
   and your labor on what does not satisfy?

Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
   and you will delight in the richest of fare.

Isaiah 55:1-2

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For anyone interested in donating household items in good condition for the giveaway, you can drop it off on Sundays 9:30am to 4pm or by appointment with Pastor Joshua at 514 - 842 - 3090 by call or text.

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If you are interested in learning more info about the bike clinic, keep reading...

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Welcome to our Free Bike Clinic! We believe a bicycle is more than just a toy, it is transportation, freedom, independence and discovery. And it is great for our health to boot! And to enjoy it fully, the bicycle needs to be in good working order. Whether it is a newer model or an older one, we will do what we can to get your bike running smoothly.

 

Who is working on the bikes?

The chief mechanic of the day is Joshua Lee, pastor of LHBC, but also passionate cyclist and former engineer. With over 30 years of riding and fixing bikes, and having worked in the cycling and sporting goods industry, he knows a thing or two about bicycles. We also have Jarret, a passionate cyclist and cycling commuter from West Side Gathering (a fellow Pointe-Claire church) who will be lending his wrenching skills.

 

There will also be volunteers from the congregation to help with other details, from receiving the bikes to lubricating the chain and pumping up tires, to helping setup and take-down.

 

What do you offer?

The goal of the clinic is to bring your bike to a good working order. We will therefore make adjustments to bring your shifting and braking to perform as well as they can, but given that we are not able to provide replacement parts, we will let you know if anything needs to be replaced. Or, if you know a part needs replacing, bring us the replacement part (e.g. a new tire or cable or chain) and we will install it for you. To purchase parts, we can suggest Gianella in Pierrefonds and Paul's Cycle in Pointe-Claire (village) who have supported us in the past.

 

How much does it cost?

NOTHING! Today’s service is FREE. But if you insist on giving something, we invite you to pay it forward with an act of kindness to someone else. We will also be accepting (non-perishable) food donations for West Island Mission Food Bank that serves families in need in Pointe-Claire. Monetary donations can also be made directly by visiting their website and clicking on “Donate Now”.

 

 

Why are you doing this?

We are part of many churches across Canada that are participating in The Big Give, a day of giving to our communities. Our heart is to reflect the generosity of our heavenly Father who gave us eternal life through Jesus, His only begotten Son. For more info about the Big Give, check out: thebiggive.ca

 

Who is this for?

We are looking to help people and families who would otherwise not be able to have their bikes tuned-up. Having worked in the bike shop industry, we know that bike repair bills may be beyond what some are able to afford, especially now. We are inviting people and families from Pointe Claire and surrounding boroughs to bring their bikes, especially their kids' or youths' bikes for a free tune-up

 

If you are thinking of bringing a bike that hasn’t been used for years,  it would be a good idea to bring new tires and tubes, or on the flip side has years worth of grime build-up, would you extend us the courtesy of washing your bike first? It doesn't have to be sparkling but working on a bike that isn't caked with dirt or grease will help us to bring it up to the maximum potential.

 

Also, while we do not want to turn anyone away, if you bring us a higher end bike (say worth more than 600$) we may have to suggest you to visit the bike shop instead. While we personally enjoy working on nicer bikes, this event is geared toward those that otherwise wouldn't be able to afford it, or whose bikes wouldn't normally be accepted at a bike shop.

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Anything I should know?

Joshua and the team of mechanics have many years of experience, and have brought an array of cycling tools to repair bikes of all kinds and ages. But in the course of bike repair, it may happen that parts break, either because it is seized, or it was previously damaged (e.g. from a crash), or age (e.g. rubber components that are dry rotted) or it may simply be of low quality (budget bikes) that does not fare well to servicing. By bringing your bike to this free tune-up and signing-up your bike, you are agreeing that LHBC or anyone associated with the clinic will not be held responsible for any damage that may occur during the course of the repair.

 

From death to life:

A story from past event: a man had brought his taco’d wheel to see if it could be brought back to service. Despite valiant efforts, the rim had sustained too much damage to be trued back into shape, and even if that could be done, the spoke tensions would have been all over the place, resulting in a wheel that was just waiting to collapse (and possibly cause an accident!). But by coincidence – we believe providence – there was another client who had a flat tire that happened to be in need of a tube that was the exact size as on the taco’d wheel. The man gladly gave the tire and tube off his damaged wheel so that the other client could have their bike up and running again! It wasn’t quite an organ transplant, but close! Both walked away (or rode away for the latter) with a happy ending!

 

OK, I’D LOVE TO GET MY BIKE TUNED UP.

HOW DO I SIGN UP?

Sign up for your free tune-up by clicking HERE.