We have missed our community, we have missed wrenching on your bikes, and we miss you.
As Illinois enters the Bridge Phase and comes out of this pandemic, we are actively working on reopening our programs. Keep your eyes on this space for announcements about our programs going forward.
We are encourage all of our volunteers and patrons to get vaccinated if possible so that we can all safely work together again soon.
This year is our 15th year since we opened in an Evanston Basement. It was a very different year, but we are still committed to our community. In 2020, we distributed 151 Freecyclery Bike. We installed a new bike corral on Paulina. We beautified potholes with mosaic art across Rogers Park.
In celebration of all that we accomplished and all that we plan to do, we have launched our annual Tailwind for Tools fundraiser. Thus far we have already raised over $3,800 towards our goal of $10,000!
All the donations will go to helping keep our shop staffed and running through this hard winter. We are getting our shop ready to serve the community as soon as it is safe to be together again. Please donate below.
In years past we have hosted an Open House to bring our community together in celebration in our shared space. This year will be a bit different but we are still planning a slate of remote activities to engage our volunteers, patrons and community from the past two decades, and hopefully we will welcome new members interested in community biking. Stay tuned for updates about online events, we look forward to celebrating our wonderful community through a series of on-line events in the coming weeks.
The Recylery’s WTF open shop (women, trans, femme) is going on a hiatus. The Collective and shop volunteers launched this program in the summer of 2017 with great enthusiasm. We teamed up with Women Bike Chicago and CommunityCave Chicago to increase the participation and leadership of women, trans, and gender-nonconforming persons in our bike community and in cycling/mechanics in general.
In recent months, we’ve seen program attendance shrinking. Because of this, the Collective has decided to pause this program. We may restart our WTF Open Shop if community interest in it increases.
Please feel free to send us your questions, comments, and other feedback at [email protected].
Our Mission
The Recyclery Collective is an educational bike shop that promotes sustainability by giving access to tools, skills, and opportunities for collaboration.
Our Vision
We envision a diverse, resilient neighborhood filled with knowledgeable, self-reliant cyclists.
Our Values
Collaboration: We create opportunities for people of all backgrounds to work, share, and learn together to support a practical form of transportation.
Social Justice: We provide tools and resources to empower underserved populations and nurture community leaders.
Ecological Sustainability: We encourage the mindful use of resources and promote cycling as a part of building more resilient communities.
The Recyclery is a 501c3 non-profit run primarily by volunteers. All major decisions are made by a quorum of collective members at a twice-a-month meeting. The Collective follows a consensus decision making model and is open to anyone willing to put in the time and effort to fulfill collective entry requirements. A few staff members are paid for administrative tasks, fixing bikes for sale, and teaching classes.
Meet our collective and staff members here.
Our Support
The Recyclery is grateful for all the support we receive from the wider community.