For a second consecutive year, three local Masonic Lodges have donated bicycles to schools in the Allen County School District.
The Graham Lodge, the Halfway Lodge, and the New Roe Lodge presented six bikes to administrative representatives from the Allen County Primary Center, Allen County Intermediate Center and the James E. Bazzell Middle School last Friday at the Allen County Board of Education. The bikes---sized according to the age-level of the schools---will be given away as rewards to chosen students who excel in attendance or in the chosen promotion of the school. The giveaways will come later in the school year.
The bicycle gifts stemmed from a program implemented by Masonic lodges across the state in recent years. A retired school administrator from Somerset---who was also a high-ranking Kentucky Masonic officer---asked masons across the Commonwealth to consider donating bikes to schools to be used as reward incentives. Masons from Graham Lodge, Halfway, and New Roe choose to participate and purchased the bicycles for the schools.
The Bowling Green law firm of Hughes and Coleman also donated helmets to be presented along with the bicycles.