Blog: Dohn in the Community with Wish For Wheels
By: Jen Hitt, Marketing Coordinator
There have always been two important elements woven into the
Dohn Construction culture: community service and bicycling.
Over the years, Dohn has volunteered with many local
organizations and non-profits, served on boards, and holds an annual charity
golf tournament. In 2021, Dohn
raised close to $36,000 for the Suicide Prevention Coalition of Colorado.
The Dohns have always been a huge supporter of biking culture
and have sponsored bicycling teams in the past. Dohn holds a silver Bicycle
Friendly Business designation by The
League of American Bicyclists.
So when the opportunity to partner with Wish for Wheels
presented itself, it felt like a perfect fit for the company.
Wish for Wheels is a
nonprofit that gives brand new bikes and helmets to 2nd graders in
Title 1 (low-income) schools. The nonprofit was founded in 2004 by Brad Appel, an
avid biker himself, and says that Wish for Wheels is special because of the
freedom and independence that kids can experience from having their own bike.
Having a way to get to school every day means higher attendance, better test
scores, and wellness.
One of the ways that Wish for Wheels funds their program is
through corporate philanthropy. But donating to Wish for Wheels is so much more
than handing over a check; it’s an opportunity for companies to come together
for a day of community and team building.
Dohn Construction had the opportunity in the Fall of 2021 to
purchase and build 109 bikes for 2nd graders at Linton Elementary in Fort Collins and DCIS Fairmont in Denver.
Dohn team members at both of our offices were paid for their
volunteer time and got to test out their bike-building skills…blindfolded!
Part of the teambuilding experience with Wish for Wheels is
partnering with a coworker to build a bike: one person is the blindfolded
builder and one person is the communicator. The communicator couldn’t do
anything to help the builder other than give verbal instruction. Then, the
partners got to reverse roles.
Although it sounds impossible to build a bike while
blindfolded, our team did it! (Don’t worry…there was a thorough quality control
portion of the build before the bikes were given to the 2nd
graders).
While it was great to do some teambuilding with our fellow coworkers
in the beautiful fall weather, there was nothing better than watching these ecstatic
2nd graders get their bikes. Our Dohn team members got to spend
one-on-one time giving each student their bike, or as Brad calls it, “the heart
forward” portion of the build.
Each Dohn team member was partnered with a 2nd
grader and from there, we helped the students pick their bike, fit them for a
helmet, and help them get on their bikes and ride. For some of the students,
this was the first time they had ever been on a bike, and it was just as
exciting for us to watch the experience as it was for the student riding that
bike.
“It gives kids freedom to be able to go wherever they want
and explore the great outdoors outside of their normal territory, while getting
some exercise,” said Victor Trowbridge, Project Manager at Dohn Construction.
To say that the day was meaningful and impactful to our team
is an understatement. One of Dohn’s four core values is Community, and these
two bike builds very much resonated with our desire to enrich the communities
in which we work.
Since the bike builds, our Director of Business Development,
Jeff Ayres, has joined the Wish for Wheels
Board of Directors.
“Bike riding and the cycling community have been a huge part
of my life ever since I first started building dirt jumps behind my middle
school. I was involved in Mountain Bike Club in college, road racing, and more
recently, Enduro. I’m excited to contribute to giving kids the same freedom and
experiences that I was fortunate enough to have throughout my life.”
The Dohn team is looking forward to doing another build in
2022; hopefully at a school in between Denver and Fort Collins so that we can
have one big day of team building and community with our two offices together. For
any company that is looking for a way to give back and have a meaningful day of
teambuilding, we highly recommend Wish for Wheels!
About: Dohn Construction is a commercial construction management firm with offices in Fort Collins, CO and Denver, CO. Founded in 1992, Dohn Construction has built over 10 million square feet of varying projects across the state of Colorado by serving as a valuable general contracting resource to its clients and partners. For more information, please visit www.dohnconstruction.com or call 970-490-1855.