Free Bike Giveaway Provides A Merry Christmas For Some Walnut Creek Kids

More than a dozen Walnut Creek children who weren't going to get a bike for Christmas now have one.

On Monday, the Morgan Stanley office in Walnut Creek gave away 16 bicycles to kids from two local schools.

The children were chosen by the principals at Buena Vista and Murwood elementary schools for the free gift.

The kids were treated to cookies and punch Monday afternoon in a conference room at the company's offices on North California Boulevard.

The children heard from a Walnut Creek police officer who advised them on how to ride a bike safely. Among the tips were to walk, not ride, your bicycle in a crosswalk. They also learned bicyclists under 18 are allowed to ride their bikes on a sidewalk.

The children also met U.S. Olympic cyclist "Fast Freddie" Rodriguez. He told them about the various countries he has raced in as well as the time he was clocked going 67 miles per hour downhill on his bike.

He told them cycling is a safe, fun and healthy thing to do. He noted his father, who is now 80, still cycles.

"It's something you can do all your life," he said.

One of the children who received a free bike on Monday was Sophia Wheelehan. Her mother, Svetlana Igolkina, a Russian immigrant, said the family couldn't afford a bicycle this Christmas, but the Morgan Stanley office made it happen.

"It was a wonderful, unexpected surprise," she said.

Renee Arst, executive director and complex manager for Morgan Stanley, said the bike giveaway is part of her company's culture.

"Morgan Stanley encourages us to be active in the community and this is a wonderful way to do it," she said.

Over the past nine years, Morgan Stanley offices have donated 1,500 bikes to various non-profit groups in the Bay Area.