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18 year-old Cristian Felix walks 6 miles to and from work at a fast food restaurant in Pheonix, Arizona. Due to the late hours of his shift, there are no buses running and he does not drive a car.

Phoenix Police Sgt. Natalie Simonick was patrolling the area one night and noticed Felix was out very late walking around. She pulled over for a curfew check to see if he was underage.

Says the officer: “It’s really not a safe area, there were no residential homes or businesses. It was kind of desolate out there so I asked if he wanted a ride and he said sure,” “I asked him if he ever had a bicycle, because that’s a little safer than walking.”

Felix told the officer he has never ridden a bike before. The officer was quite impressed with his initiative that she decided to give him his first bike. She had an extra bike at home and talked with her husband about teaching the young man how to ride.

She said: “We brought him to the precinct and we taught him how to ride in the parking lot”.

Well not only did they give him his first bike, but they bought him a bike lock, a light, and a helmet.


Photo courtesy: Phoenix Police Department