Celebrating Milestone with Jack the Bike Man

Palm Beach Daily News, Sunday, January 7, 2018

Benefit auction marks 10 years as nonprofit.

The white lights and evergreen decorated Sailfish Club was the setting for an evening of big wheels and small.  The auction and dinner to benefit Jack the Bike Man took place Dec. 16, 2017 and celebrated the 10th anniversary of the organization’s nonprofit status. Mariano Garcia was chairman for the evening, which included a silent auction of collectible bicycles, the club’s famous seafood buffet, dinner and dancing.

Since 1999, Samuel H. “Jack” Hairston III—affectionately known as “Jack the Bike Man”—has given away thousands of refurbished bicycles to underprivileged kids, the homeless population, women re-entering society from prison, recovering addicts in halfway houses and people living below the poverty line. In 2007, Hairston turned the project into an official501(C)3 nonprofit.

The event also served as a kickoff for the capital campaign for land and construction of a building to ensure the continuation of the organization’s programs. Proceeds from the anniversary celebration will assist Jack the Bike Man Inc. in its mission to create a community of healthy individuals by providing hope to the less fortunate through support, training, access to bicycles and safety programs.

—sdonnelly@pbdailynews.comTwitter: @pbdnsociety

Damon Higgins, Daily News Photos