Bike Shop Of Bel Air Helps With Heart-Melting Holiday Tune-Up

BEL AIR, MD — A Bel Air business owner helped make the holidays brighter for a boy in Harford County.

The Bike Shop of Bel Air assisted a school resource officer at Havre de Grace Elementary School this week in completing a very special assignment.

Officer Jarrid Coleman noticed that one of his students, D'Andrew, had been riding a bike each day that raised some safety concerns. The tires were bald, the brakes were failing and the chain was busted.

During school hours, Coleman took the bicycle to The Bike Shop of Bel Air at 2442 Churchville Road, where the tires were replaced, the brakes were repaired and other tune-ups made the bike like new again.

The fifth grader received a surprise at the end of school Wednesday that moved him to tears. See the video at the end of the article.

Carl Wakefield, who owns The Bike Shop of Bel Air, played a key role in making the surprise happen.

"Carl and his staff did this at no charge, and even offered help to educate kids on bike maintenance," police said in a statement.

The Bike Shop of Bel Air is where the Havre de Grace Police Department gets its police bicycles serviced, officials told Patch.

Now the school resource officer and bike shop owner are planning to hold a bike club to help kids who ride their bikes to school learn how to properly maintain their bicycles.

The bike club would likely start in January or February. And the work that has already been done has made the holiday season a smoother ride for one Havre de Grace boy.

Photos and video courtesy of Havre de Grace Police Department.