Lamar Masons donate bicycles
Pictured here are (front, with bikes) Ashley Brown, Samuel Ritter, Evan Yang, Elaine Yang, Leslie McCathern, Ronnie Abson, (standing behind, from left) Sam Tallon, Willis Thomas, Michelle Wallace, Krista Knotts, Sherri Humphries, Bobby Stokes, Robert Knotts, and Rusty Bradshaw
By Samantha Lyles, Staff Writer, slyles@newsandpress.net
Six great kids received a pretty cool reward for excelling at their summer reading as the Lamar Masonic Lodge 287 presented them with brand new bicycles. Three boys and three girls in different age groups received these two-wheeled trophies for finishing the Summer Reading program at the Lamar Library and scoring high on comprehension tests after completing each assigned book.
Mason Senior Warden Robert Knotts organized the bike donation effort, drafting volunteers and drumming up donations, after reading about similar community programs in a Masonic magazine. Knotts says altogether, the Masons raised over $1,100 for the program, and the $560 leftover after buying bikes will be donated to the Lamar Library.
“We’re hoping to do this annually,” said Knotts, adding that he dreams of the program growing larger with time. “I’d like to get it where we can give every child who participates a bicycle.”
Lamar Library director Sherri Humphries offered a big “thank you” to the Masons for their generosity and encouragement.
“Literacy is very important and something the library is a big proponent of, and we really appreciate their partnering with us in our endeavor to keep children reading over the summer,” said Humphries.
These top-reading kids also received cable locks and bike helmets to protect their shiny new bikes and their very promising young brains.
