Story from the Fayetteville Observer [fayobserver.com]: [slide show]

By John Ramsey
Staff writer

A red hoodie and blue jeans shielded David Renkel’s small frame from the biting chill, but he knew he’d forgotten something.

In the 9-year-old boy’s rush to leave home before 8:30 a.m., socks slipped his mind as he strapped on his sandals. His older sister, Destiny Goff, still in pajama pants and fuzzy bedroom slippers, had put on three pairs. While the two stood in line with their mother outside a warehouse filled with bikes, Destiny pulled off her slippers and two socks, which David quickly used to cover his numb toes.

Shivering, the siblings were among hundreds of children excited by the prospect of an early Christmas present, one many of their parents couldn’t afford this season: a bicycle.

The bikes inside the warehouse belonged to Moses Mathis, who earned the nickname Bicycle Man from years of repairing old two-wheelers to give children at Christmas time.

David’s old bike broke. And he’s not picky about a new one.

“As long as it’s a working bike, it’s fine,” he said. “As long as it’s not a girlie bike.”

Once inside, after walking past the mural of Mathis flying around like Superman — complete with a “B” on his chest — David didn’t take long to choose. He walked past the girlie bikes, pink and purple princess ones, others featuring Dora the Explorer and Hannah Montana. His eyes locked on a white and black Air Maxx bicycle.

“It just glows,” he said.

Mathis said he lives for moments like that. This year he asked families for a $5 donation to keep the program running, but he didn’t require it. It costs more than $10,000 a year to keep everything running.

His program began 16 years ago in the Whispering Pines neighborhood, when he fixed a bike for a child who didn’t get one for Christmas. It spread a few years through word of mouth, then blew up when he was featured on the 6 o’clock news.

Last year, Mathis repaired about 700 bikes. And this year, by his count, he had 1,072 lined up in his warehouse, each waiting to be rolled outside by a child. He also gives away refurbished computers.

To get one of Mathis’ gifts, a child has to be referred by his or her school.

A tall man with a short white beard, Mathis is like Fayetteville’s own Santa Claus.

Reguz Whitted, a 10-year-old who was first in line Tuesday morning, said he prefers Mr. Mathis to St. Nick.

Long after Reguz had gone through the line — choosing a bicycle, a helmet and receiving a gift bag and cookies — hordes of children stood waiting.

At 10 a.m., 90 minutes after the giveaway started, the line curled through the parking lot from the warehouse doorway out to Black and Decker Road.

Mathis said any leftover bikes and computers will be given away first-come, first-served Wednesday starting at 8 a.m.

Staff writer John Ramsey can be reached at ramseyj@fayobserver.com or 910-486-3574.

The staff writer incorrectly identifies the neighborhood above as Whispering Pines. It is Tiffany Pines. Thanks Mr. Mathis for all that you do.