TRUMBULL COUNTY Pumped up over giving kids bikes

Donations totaled more than $7,000.
By STEPHEN SIFF
VINDICATOR TRUMBULL STAFF
HOWLAND -- Every needy child in Trumbull County who asked the Salvation Army for a bicycle for Christmas will get one this year, thanks to five weeks of tireless fund raising by a 40-person medical office.
"This is a small miracle," said Sandy Milchling, the nurse at The Surgery Center Howland, Niles-Cortland Road Southeast, who headed up the effort.
Last week, center volunteers delivered the last of the 200 bicycles purchased since the drive began to the Salvation Army Warren Corps.
On Tuesday, parents picked them up from the SA for delivery under the Christmas tree.
"They are thrilled, very excited," said Sherry Starnes of the Salvation Army.
The bicycles are over and above the regular, smaller gifts the SA provides for needy families -- clothes, small toys and board games.
In fact, most years, children are instructed not to ask for bicycles because it is a wish that is usually too grand to be met.
"It is not fair," Milchling said. "They couldn't dream of sugarplums; they had to dream of underwear instead."
The mostly female staff at The Surgery Center has helped families through the Salvation Army for the last five years on a smaller scale.
What they did
To raise $7,300 for bicycles, they sold lunches every week, had a silent auction and hit up suppliers, family members and friends.
Suppliers and salesmen who normally shower the office with gifts for employees were encouraged to bring in bicycles instead. Doctors also were encouraged to give. Checks came in from relatives and friends as far away as Boston.
Milchling, who came up with the idea, also was the chief cheerleader, other employees say.
"I'm telling you, if it was not for her, we wouldn't have been able to do it," said Lisa Luscher, an office worker.
The goal of providing every child who asked for a bicycle was overwhelming, considering the number of children who want bikes and the fact that even an inexpensive bicycle costs more than $50.
"At the start, we said, '200 bikes; she is crazy,'" said Mary Alice Bearfield, a nurse. "Miracles happen every day."
siff@vindy.com