Andy Greif harbors a deep passion for working with young people. For the past eight years this passion has taken on wheels, specifically the double wheels of a bicycle that could be built for one or two—or, as was the case of his first stint in mentoring through a bike, for four.

As a counselor at the REAL School, an alternative institution for middle and high school students in Windham, Maine, Greif found that counseling youth through conversation was awkward, so he looked around for more active ways of reaching his kids. Around the same time, he was seeking some outside recognition for his students—something that would get them positive attention.

The Trek Across Maine—a three-day bicycle ride from Sunday River to the sea—was coming up. A donor to the school offered a four-person bike. Four people riding a bicycle together? That would surely generate interest, thought Greif. He also knew that the time spent working on bikes would offer good discussion opportunities, and that the six-month commitment the kids would need to get ready for the Trek would mean a lot to their sense of self.

Greif has been getting kids involved with bicycles ever since. At first, he worked within the school system, then with the local YMCA. Two years ago, he launched
the nonprofit Community Bicycle Center in Biddeford.

No longer a counselor, Greif now finds ways for children to enhance their self-confidence by repairing bikes for themselves or for others, going on bicycle trips and connecting with adults. "The work is about building up a sense of self," he says.

"That’s what I get excited about," says Greif. "I don’t always have the staff and resources to accomplish this," he notes, "but we’re here to make the conversation happen." The Community Bicycling Center has received support from the Maine Community Foundation's York County Children's Aid Society Fund, which is now a part of the newly launched York County Fund.

Bicycles are a great tool for working with young people, especially middle-school- aged kids. "Bikes offer kids their first sense of freedom," Greif says. Yet more important is the mentoring, the bringing together of young and older people, offering adolescents a connection to a range of adults.

For this reason, Greif's legacy at the Maine Community Foundation is about mentoring. Through a bequest to the foundation, much of his assets will go into a fund that will continue his life's mission of empowering youth through hands-on activities. He chose the foundation, he says, "because I thought it would be a good place—once I’m gone—to manage the assets I've accumulated to support mentoring programs, with an emphasis on programs that do bike work."

Part of Greif's belief in the value of mentoring and hands-on education lies in his own experience. He came from a family that was philanthropic and gave him a multitude of opportunities. "I had other caring adults involved in my life who helped me grow up and learn life skills," Greif says. That's a gift he plans to pass on to others.

Read the Maine Community Foundation Winter 2008 newsletter
and other MaineCF publications here.