By ALEX PIAZZA
TRAVERSE CITY -- With the turn of a wrench, Don Cunkle enabled a local homeless man to attend a court hearing in Muskegon.
It was no easy trek for the man who pedaled hundreds of miles from Traverse City on his bike.
He arrived on time, but the bike bearings disintegrated during his trip home. So instead of ditching the ride, the homeless man walked his only form of transportation back to Cunkle's garage.
"I asked him why he didn't just leave it on the side of the road," said Cunkle, 58, of Traverse City. "He said, 'Because you gave me this bike.'"
The bike was beyond repair, so Cunkle refurbished another two-wheeler for the man.
For the past three years, Cunkle has repaired more than 300 old bikes inside his garage and donated them to homeless people throughout Traverse City.
The bikes give homeless people a "sense of empowerment," said Elizabeth Post, manager of the Goodwill Inn Homeless Shelter.
She said Cunkle frequents the Goodwill Inn to drop off bikes, and also to ensure that riders fit them.
"He measures people and watches them ride around on the bikes," Post said. "He's just really passionate about what he does."
Cunkle is a teacher's assistant at the Traverse Bay Area Intermediate School District Adult Work Center, but he spends most of his free time in the garage repairing rusty chains and aligning brake pads.
"During the summer, I can spend up to six hours on them after work," he said. "I've got close to 350 hours in this year. I'm not a TV-watcher, so I don't sit around."
His commitment to repairing bikes for local homeless people stems from his passion for riding. Cunkle is a member of the Cherry Capital Cycling Club, and rides his bike to work every day.
The cycling club donates money to offset Cunkle's out-of-pocket expenses. He also received a grant from the Campbell Endowment Fund that covered thousands of dollars he shelled out for bike repairs last year.
To avoid paying top dollar for bikes, Cunkle frequents local garage sales. Some bikes are beyond repair, so Cunkle strips them of their handle bars and pedals.
He's also received bikes from residents who no longer have room to store them.
"I'm getting bikes that need quite a bit of repair," he said. "I don't get the good bikes."
Cunkle said he will continue to refurbish old bikes, as long as there's a need from local homeless people.
"It's a pretty good feeling when you see them riding their bike around town," he said.
