The latest breaking updates, delivered straight to your email inbox.
There are more than 700 happy children in Mitchell, Indiana, thanks to a hometown hero's generosity. City Bikes
NASCAR driver Chase Briscoe, a native of Mitchell, gave each elementary school child in the Mitchell School District a brand new Huffy bike on Monday.
"Some of my best memories in Mitchell were actually riding a bike throughout town. My buddies and I would get on bikes and would just cruise around," said Briscoe. "I want kids to be active and outdoors and things like that, and I feel like this is a great way to do that. So hopefully, they'll enjoy them as much as I did."
Briscoe was able to give the bikes away with the help of his team, Stewart-Haas Racing, and partner Huffy.
On Monday, the Mitchell High School gym was filled with more than 700 bikes. Families were able to pick up their child's bike.
"[My daughter] has not had a brand new bike probably ever. So, this is really cool!" said Leann Taylor, mother of a fifth grader.
"Everybody's really happy for their kids that they get this for Christmas. I mean, I just keep saying it's overwhelming and exciting, and I can only imagine how the kids are going to feel," said Samantha Miller, the grandmother of a third grader.
Dr. Brent Comer, the superintendent of the Mitchell School District, said the community rallied to make this happen. Students from MJHS and MHS helped to distribute the bikes, while local businesses sent employees to help assemble the 700 bikes over the weekend.
"To do that is remarkable. What a gift to this community," said Comer. "For a lot of my students, this will be the nicest Christmas gift they might ever get. For them to not only have a gift, but a bike that they can be active and start exploring the world and get off the couch and and do some things. It's just it's incredible."
Briscoe said he's ecstatic to get to give back to his hometown which means so much to him.
"This community, ever since day one when I started racing on the national stage, has gotten behind me, whether it was a good day or bad day. For me, I'm really just prideful to be from Mitchell, Indiana," said Briscoe.
If parents were unable to pick up their bikes on Monday, officials will be at the Mitchell High School gym on Tuesday to distribute bikes.
Aluminium Balance Bike Hearst Television participates in various affiliate marketing programs, which means we may get paid commissions on editorially chosen products purchased through our links to retailer sites.