PERU, Ind. – Stolen bicycles have never helped so many people.

Every year, the Peru Police Department confiscates as many as 120 stolen or abandoned bicycles. In the past, the two-wheelers were stored and, if no one claimed them, auctioned off for a few bucks.

But now, those bikes are getting into the hands of local residents who might not have any other way to get around town.

The new outreach is called Life Cycle, and it’s the first program of its kind in Indiana.

The idea is simple: Take unclaimed bikes from the police department, fix them up and give them away to people who don’t have a means of transportation.

The program launched in February. So far, nearly 30 people have picked up a free bike to get to work, substance-abuse treatment, court hearings, doctor’s appointments or anywhere else they need to go.

The outreach is the brainchild of Antonia Sawyer, chair of the Miami County Systems of Care Governance Coalition, which was created last year through a state grant to help the county improve access to behavioral and mental health services.

She said one of the biggest obstacles for people with mental health issues is one most people take for granted – having a car to go places. That’s an especially big problem in Peru, where the only form of public transportation is on-call transit buses operated by the YMCA.

But in Peru, you can get just about anywhere in town in 15 minutes or less on a bike.

“It really empowers those people who have a suspended license or can’t drive because of medical reasons,” Sawyer said.

She said she got the idea through her work with the Howard County Department of Child Services. One of her clients always had to bum rides from people to get to therapy sessions and supervised visits. But one day, she stopped asking for rides.

Why? Sawyer found out she had gotten a bike that had been confiscated by the Howard County Sheriff’s Department in Indiana. The client’s grandpa fixed it up for her, and, just like that, she had a way to get to her appointments.

“I said, ‘Wow, that’s actually a great idea,’” Sawyer said.

So she approached Peru Police Chief Mike Meeks to see if there was a way to do the same thing, but make it a city-sanctioned program.

Meeks said when he heard to proposal, he was instantly on board.

“I thought it was an outstanding idea,” he said. “It seemed like a great idea to recycle these bikes and get them to people who need them.”

Now, unclaimed bikes head over to Breakaway Bike Shop in Peru, where General Manager Zac See volunteers his time and talent to fix them up into a road-worthy two-wheeler.

See said when Sawyer approached him to ask if he would consider donating his time to fix bikes for the outreach, he was all for it.

After all, See said, he could empathize with the goal of the program. He said when he was in his early 20s, he struggled with alcohol and ended up losing his license for a short time, forcing him to get rides from family and friends.

Now, as a bike expert and business owner, See is more than willing to help out people who might be down on their luck or struggling with substance abuse.

“Whether they are recovering addicts or alcoholic or fresh out of jail, they don’t have the luxury of transportation,” he said. “You got to give something back, I think, just for your own sanity and for the benefit of those around you. It helps them out and helps me remain thankful and grateful for how good I have it.”

Everyone who receives a bike is entered into Charity Tracker, an online application used to gather, share and report statistical data for resource development, strategic planning and measuring outcomes.

Sawyer said that information will help determine how to better expand the outreach in the future. It also allows providers to follow up with people who might need other services after they come pick up a bike.

Although Life Cycle is just over six-months old, it’s already become a success story, Sawyer said. Now, she’s trying to get other cities and towns to adopt similar programs to help meet the needs of their community.

“In five years, if I had a dream, I’d love to see this in any county that is rural and has a lack of transportation,” Sawyer said. “I could die happy if I could see this all over Indiana. It’s healthy, it’s cheap and it can change lives.”

Gerber writes for the Kokomo, Indiana Tribune.