A favorite organization of much of the Gaetani team, SFBike is working to build a safer, cleaner, and more equitable City for everyone – and yes, that includes people who drive cars, too.

One of the most important things that SF Bike does is the whole idea of building a coalition  – a movement even. It's continuous process, as they have to work with each generation to help change the way people move. A lot of their work is centered around programs such as Safe Routes to Schools, where they work with youth and families to teach the kids how to safely ride on city streets – and help parents get comfortable with the idea of their kids riding bikes on those streets.

Staff and volunteers also go to school playgrounds on the weekends to teach kids -- and adults -- to learn how to ride a bike. Lessons are available in Spanish and Mandarin to help reach all of San Francisco's communities. SFBike's approach is to "show up with humility" and listen to communities on how they believe that active transportation could improve their lives and their neighborhoods. Once these citizens engage with SFBike, they start to see the value in learning to ride and having good infrastructure in their neighborhood.

The Coalition works neighborhood by neighborhood across the city, and puts extra effort in with communities such as those in the Southeast part of San Francisco where they've concluded they have not historically built trust before advocating for policy and infrastructure changes. What's clear is that there has been an historical neglect in the Southeast, whether those are providing adequate public transit resources or teaching residents about the b.enefits of active mobility - people powered transportation – so an emphasis is put on making sure to communicate the benefits and undo any of the harm - real or perceived – that active transport policies and infrastructure changes may have caused.

The Adult Learn to Ride program the Coalition offers has also transformed many lives for the better, because riding a bike frees up people to get to work on their own schedule, affordably and with health benefits.  So has SFBike's repair classes, which help people save time and money by teaching them to maintain their mode of transit themselves – with no more costly trips to the garage, the smog shop, or, worst of all, the impound yard.

What's clear is that any measure of financial support SFBike receives makes a big difference --  from things like Bike it Forward (repairing donated bikes and providing them to disadvantaged households) to Freedom from Training Wheels (giving kids the confidence to ride on two wheels from the start). What's impressive is that fully 43% of their budget comes from the generosity of San Franciscans: Foundations, corporations, and individuals who provide grants to help the organization achieve its mission.

Ultimately, SFBike is working to support the transformation of San Francisco neighborhoods into safe and healthy places for all – because at some point, everyone is a pedestrian, even if they get into car at the other end – a place where no one has to lose their life simply by being on the streets. Studies have shown that streets with bike lanes are safer for everyone -- including people in cars. And the more people ride bikes, there's less congestion and easier parking someone who has to drive a car. What's more, pedestrian and bike-friendly streets are better for merchants, because it turns out that people who walk and bike spend more locally and spend locally more often than people who arrive by car.

Gaetani is proud to be a business member of the San Francisco Bicycle Coalition. You can learn more about the organization and join yourself at SFBike.org. Want to help sponsor some of these programs? Email Mia Lauter, Manager of Institutional Giving, at development@sfbike.org. Happy cycling!