A Penticton family is paying it forward after total strangers came together to replace their young children鈥檚 bikes that were stolen during a walk in the trails near Penticton Avenue on New Year鈥檚 Day, Jan. 1.

Dawn Jones and her husband were on their daily walk, up near the water treatment plant on Penticton Avenue when they met a distraught family who had just noticed their kids鈥� bikes stolen in the few minutes they walked away from them.

Originally, the kids, ages two and four, were on their bikes, a strider bike and mountain bike, while mom and dad walked. But the kids got tired of biking so they tucked the two small bikes behind a tree and walked for five to 10 minutes so the kids could play in the snow, said Jones.

When the family came back, the bikes were gone.

Jones and her husband walked up just as they discovered the bikes missing.

鈥淭he parents couldn鈥檛 believe it. They were gone from the bikes for only five minutes and they were stolen. How did someone walk by in that time, see the bikes and take them? My heart just goes out to the two little kids who probably got the bikes for Christmas and now they鈥檙e gone,鈥� said Jones who took to the Facebook page Penticton locals helping locals.

Jones got their name and phone number and promised to call them if she heard anything or saw the bikes for sale on any online selling sites.

鈥淭his young couple didn鈥檛 ask for anything, they just looked so darn sad as all they were doing was taking their young kids out for some fresh air fun.鈥�

What happened next is an example of the kind of caring community Penticton is. Donations came pouring in to replace the stolen bikes.

鈥淭hrough the kindness of total strangers I was able to go to Canadian Tire and buy new bikes for these wee little kids,鈥� Jones posted to Facebook.

鈥淚 honestly only posted the story to prevent someone from buying the stolen bikes,鈥� said Jones. 鈥淚 never thought it would turn out the way it did.鈥�

Jones gave the bikes to the small children this weekend.

鈥淭heir happy little faces say it all,鈥� she said about giving the kids new bikes.

The parents then took to Facebook to thank all the strangers who came together to help.

鈥淭o the generous people of Penticton who donated towards my children鈥檚 bikes, thank you. On New Year鈥檚 day my wife, four-year-old son and two-year-old daughter decided to go for a walk down memory lane in the area we had purchased our first home (at the Bridgewater subdivision),鈥� the dad wrote in a Facebook post.

鈥淲e wanted to show the kids our first home and the waterfall at the end of the walking trail. On our way back from the falls we discovered our children鈥檚 bikes had been stolen. It was certainly heartbreaking as the bikes were gifts and meant a lot to us.

鈥淲e were not expecting new bikes for the kids the very next day but that鈥檚 exactly what happened. We are very grateful and appreciative. My kids have been riding the bikes around the house all evening. You all transformed a negative moment in our lives into a very positive one.鈥�

But this feel-good story doesn鈥檛 end there.

The stolen bikes were found and turned into the police, Jones told the Western 亚洲天堂.

鈥淭he mom emailed me today asking if I wanted the bikes back to return them to Canadian Tire or she could find a needy family to donate to,鈥� said Jones.

鈥淟ana (the mom) used to work with high-risk families so she knows a lot of needy children. I told her to please donate. It鈥檚 still Christmas time and there鈥檚 probably lots of needy children out there. She鈥檚 going to find a family and give them the bikes. So the kindness of Penticton will get paid forward.鈥�

monique.Tamminga@pentictonwesternnews.com
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