Sitting quietly in the recliner in her daughter's room Mom Mom read the article about the Jenn Nowalk and Ashley Wilson starting the Triangle Spokes Group for children in Raleigh.  She was touched by the story of the Triangle Spokes group and began asking her daughter Kay Lavelle her thoughts about what the girls had done.  It just so happened that Kay had a special interest in the group.  Kay Lavelle, Sales Director for Biltmore Homes, works closely with Ashley Wilson and Jenn Nowalk at Heritage Wake Forest and explained to her 87 year old mother who the girls were. Her mother was intrigued by the connection.  They discussed the greatness of paying it forward and Mom Mom commented that she had been torn over what to buy her 13 great grandchildren for Christmas this year.  She told Kay that this year she wanted to donate a bike in each child's honor to the Triangle Spokes Group.  She wanted her Great Grandchildren to understand what it meant to pay it forward and give back and a young age.  They were not in need of any toys or clothing, so giving to another child was a perfect holiday gift for them. 

Only a few days later after this discussion, Mom Mom died in that same chair on December 3, 2007.  Kay found her sitting peacefully.  Kay still donated all 13 bikes in honor of all 13 great grandkids and in memory of Mom Mom.  Triangle Spokes Group thanks Kay Lavelle and Mom Mom and their entire family.





Birthday Party Story

Kim was touched by the story she saw in the N&O about the Triangle Spokes Group. Her husband, Steve, is an avid cyclist and his birthday was approaching and Kim thought that she throw him a surprise party. The perfect idea hit her after reading the story - have all of the guests make a donation to the Triangle Spokes Group in Steve’s honor in lieu of presents and then present it to him at the party.  Steve was blown away by his friend’s generosity that they raised enough money for more than 10 bikes!  This was a gift that was larger than him and could be enjoyed by so many children so they could experience the joy that cycling brings to his life!





Kentucky Derby Party



Sean and Kristine Gill were eager to start a new tradition of a Kentucky Derby Party.  Besides bringing friends together for the fun event they wanted it to be something that could become a tradition that was focused around giving back in someway.  Well they came up with an innovative plan to auction off each Kentucky Derby Horse entered into the big race for a minimum bid of $20.  The horses that were favorites wound up going for much more then that.  They decided that half the money would go to the winning horse owner and the other half of the money would be donated to the Triangle Spokes Group.  The event was a huge success as they raised over $200 for the Triangle Spokes Group and now have an event they plan to keep going for years to come!