Bicycle man's legacy lives on in Fayetteville
Five months after his death, the tradition of Fayetteville's "Bicycle Man" continued on Saturday as his family helped distribute bikes to hundreds of Fayetteville-area children in need.
Posted — UpdatedMoses Mathis, who died in July at age 76 after a long struggle with heart problems, spent more than two decades living for days like Saturday, when he would open up his warehouse and let children from low-income families pick out a bike as an early Christmas present.
His ministry continued on without him Saturday. Ann Mathis, Moses’ wife of 46 years, promised him before his death that it would.
“I am sure that he is with me. At least his spirit is here with me,” Mathis said.
Christmas came early for seven-year-old Vanessa Cortez-Sanchez. she received her first bike.
"It has training wheels and my favorite character," exclaimed Cortez-Sanchez.
Organizers gave away 1,100 bikes on Saturday, but Mathis said she has one goal for the ministry.
"My prayer is to make it bigger and better," she said. "Not to take anything away from Moses, he made it big. I just want to make it better.”
The Bicycle Man program has been donating bikes to children since 1990.
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