CARMEL VALLEY, Calif. — At the Carmel Valley Community Park, kids ride their bikes, scooters, and skateboards. But there are kids who just go there to watch others have fun. All around the county, including the Camel Valley area, there are many families who cannot afford these for their children.
There are at least 5 affordable housing neighborhoods along Carmel Valley Road off the 56. Suzanne Meyer lives in one of those neighborhoods. She also helps non-profits that serve families in need in her area.
“This is an affordable housing complex. We’re pretty much the ‘have nots’ around here,” said Meyer.
Meyer is like the Pied Piper for the kids here. Her front door is at their playground. She grows all kinds of plants on her porch and teaches the kids about Praying Mantises and Venus Flytraps.
A neighbor's stolen bike
Last year one of her neighbor’s bike was stolen. Meyer posted a request on the NextDoor app and got six bikes donated. This week, she got another knock on her door.
“Some kids knocked on my door two days ago, and they asked for anything. A skateboard to borrow. A scooter. But I didn't have any,” said Meyer.
Meyer made another post. Meyer has since received 75 comments on that post. Not everyone has a bike to donate, but several do.
Meyer's neighbor Ginny tells her she’ll bring bike locks. She had Amazon ship Suzanne four and told her she’ll ship more if she gets more bikes.
5-year-old Antha hopes she can get a new bike or scooter. She said, “I had a scooter. I was riding it, it just [broke].”
While 10-year-old Messeh says his bike broke because it was so rusty.
Helping kids in her neighborhood and in others
Suzanne is making a list of kids who do not have a bike. She’s organizing the posts and giving out her email, phone number and address, hoping everyone will come through on their promise of a donation.
She said, “We’re going to make a lot of kids happy this summer.”
Meyer said once all the kids in her neighborhood have a bike, she’ll go to the next affordable housing neighborhood and the next until every bike has a home and she hopes, when every kid has a bike.
To donate a bike to a child in need, contact Meyer via email here.
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