Volunteering
How To Volunteer
Head Mechanic Opportunities
Shop Assistant Opportunities
Volunteering
We always need your help at re-Cycles!
The main ongoing task for us is overhauling the donated bikes, which range in condition from excellent to heavily used, and getting them ready for sale. Experience is helpful, but not essential, because anyone can participate in our learn-as-you-go approach. One of our on-duty Head Mechanics will help guide you through the process, and you may also be paired with a more experienced volunteer. If you'd like to keep track of the different bike aspects you've been learning, please ask the HM for one of our tracking sheets. We have shop aprons and coats to wear if you need to keep your clothes clean, and also some very effective hand cleaner for washing up when you are done.
And we have a special deal for all of our volunteers! Every hour you donate to us can be exchanged for a free hour at the shop to work on your own bike. You get a card, we stamp it with your hours, and you can redeem them at your convenience.
There is a wonderful sense of satisfaction when we take an old or neglected bike, breathe new life into it, and save it from a possible landfill fate. And that satisfaction is complete when someone buys one of our bikes and gets it back on the street!
How to Volunteer
The best way to get started with us is to simply show up at our shop and tell the on-duty Head Mechanic or Shop Assistant that you wish to help out. No commitment or reservations are needed; we are happy that you can join us when you have time available, and you can do so on your own schedule. Alternatively, you can email our Volunteer Coordinator Melinda Roy.
In addition to bicycle repair, we have other volunteer opportunities:
Become a Head Mechanic (details below).
Volunteer Coordinator. This person would put together and implement a plan for keeping our various volunteers connected and involved with re-Cycles.
We can always use some help with administrative work, and we also need people to give seminars and staff info booths.
Volunteering with re-Cycles has many benefits:
You can fine-tune you bicycle repair skills.
You can meet like-minded cyclists in the Ottawa area.
If you are a Secondary school student, you can carry out your required volunteer work with us.
Your volunteer experience with us can make a useful addition to a resume.
Skills learned at our co-op can help you find jobs with local bicycle shops.
Head Mechanic
re-Cycles is especially keen to have more experienced bike mechanics join our team of Head Mechanics. We're searching for friendly people with experience in bike mechanics and an interest in running at least one four-hour shop session every month. As Head Mechanic, you would have the opportunity to make good use of your bicycle mechanics knowledge:
guiding and helping volunteers working on re-Cycles' bikes.
providing instruction and advice to "do-it-yourselfers" working on their own bikes.
assisting customers wishing to purchase a re-Cycles bicycle.
generally managing the shop during for the duration of the shift.
As a Head Mechanic, you get the benefit of having access to the shop outside of regular hours, not to mention meeting all kinds of neat bicycle-people.
If you are interested in joining our HM team, please talk to the on-duty Head Mechanic at the shop when we are open, or contact re-Cycles Director Mark Rehder
Shop Assistant
Business is booming at our new location. So much that the Head Mechanic can't give all people in the shop the attention they ask. Assistance is needed, or more specifically, assistants are needed. Something for you??
As a shop assistant you help out the head mechanic on duty by taking over many of the shop-front tasks: talking to first time (or returning) visitors, advising prospective bike buyers, handling bike and part sales, and keeping track of some basic stats.
You don't need to have the extensive mechanical expertise that our head mechanics have but you will need to know (or learn a little about) how the shop operates, and we've got a cheat-sheet of procedures for you to refer to.
While we will be setting up a scheduled shop assistant roster, for now you can come in and present yourself to the head mechanic. The busiest hours are 6-8 so it'd be welcome if you could come for those hours.
If shop front work is less your interest, you can always come in and assist the Head Mechanic with technical tasks too. Visitors and and volunteers can always use more help to complete their repairs and their overhaul jobs. The same routine applies: just come in and introduce yourself to the Head Mechanic.
