The OneCranston Health Equity Zone (HEZ), using grant funds from the Rhode Island Department of Health, donated five bicycle racks to the Cranston YMCA. They partnered with The Steel Yard in Olneyville, whose student apprentices constructed and installed the racks.

The OneCranston HEZ was formed in 2019 in order to address health disparities in the City of Cranston. By creating working groups composed of stakeholders and Cranston residents, the organization is able to pinpoint places of improvement. One group in particular, the Our Built Environment group, noticed a need for better biking infrastructure in the city and wanted to add community bike racks.

The Cranston YMCA has patrons of all ages who bike to their facility. Karen Santilli, CEO of Greater Providence YMCA, wants to thank the OneCranston HEZ for their invaluable contribution. “Your commitment to promoting health and wellness is deeply appreciated and will greatly benefit our community,” she said.

“In our last community needs assessment, about 1/3 of the respondents indicated an interest in biking and walking and wanting more resources to ensure a safe experience,” said OneCranston HEZ Initiative Director Andrea Champagne. “Being able to provide updated racks in such a central location at an organization that serves a wide variety of people, particularly bike riding youth and teens, fit beautifully into our mission.”

In addition to the bike racks, the Cranston Police Department donated 30 bike helmets to the Cranston YMCA to support the children who participate in the Race4Chase Kids Triathlon program.

“Both the HEZ and the YMCA partner with the police quite a bit and we knew they often donated bike helmets to kids in the community,” said Champagne. “We asked if they would be willing to donate new bike helmets to all of the kids who were participating [in the triathlon program] and they agreed!”

“The bike racks were a nice way to connect the helmets the police had with anyone who uses the Y,” said Ivy Swinski, project manager at the OneCranston HEZ. She emphasized the collaboration between so many different organizations that made these projects possible.

“Any time we can get several community stakeholders collaborating together it is a great day! And just the fact that so many of these organizations in Cranston are always willing to work together is so exciting and inspiring,” said Champagne.

Race4Chase is a part of the CMAK Sandy Hook Memorial Foundation, in memory of Chase Kowalski, one of the victims of the Sandy Hook Elementary tragedy in 2012. Through this six-week summer program, children ages 6-12 learn the fundamentals of swimming, cycling, running, strength training and flexibility. The program provides a safe, healthy, non-competitive environment to discover the sport of triathlon and inspire them to aim high in sports and in life. At the end of the program, the children race in their regional finale event. In Rhode Island, the finale event will be at Fort Adams in Newport on Aug. 11.