PROVIDENCE — Surrounded by refurbished bicycles, repair stands, parts and helmets and tires and tubes, volunteer Michael Round answers the phones at Recycle-A-Bike, the nonprofit bicycle organization in Olneyville.

As the bell on the front door rings, two women bring in an orange, seven-speed Schwinn bike. The rear brake doesn't work, but otherwise it looks like it needs little repair, Round says. There are hundreds just like it in an expansive basement beneath the store, donations rolling in week by week.

For the past 13 years, Recycle-A-Bike has been promoting bicycling as a fun, safe, sustainable and empowering mode of transportation. That also means teaching people how to fix their own bikes, refurbishing donated bikes to be ridden again and helping people access a free mode of transport.

But in 2020, as the pandemic raged, shops closed and people turned from in-person to at-home work, the nonprofit based in Olneyville lost key staff members, including its executive director, key volunteers and board members. In all, they lost 70% of the paid and unpaid staff.

"It left us in a tough spot," President John Olivo said. "As of today, we've been trying for quite some time, navigating this, and calling out to the community, to get some help."

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The nonprofit needs new board members, including a treasurer, an outreach and community relations person and two program development people. Without an influx of board members, the shop will shut its doors in October, Olivo said.

"We need people on the leadership side who can equip the community for the long term," he said.

The organization needs board members who "have a track record behind them" of taking an idea from its infancy through execution. Too many good ideas and the to-do list becomes "gigantic," Olivo says.

Round, a volunteer and board member, is one of the few people who have trickled in since the organization lost most of its members.

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Round said he used to own a bike shop, so volunteering in one is an easy job and it gets him out of the house. As one of the people who opens the shop, he tries to help where he can with repairs. Many days, all of the shop's stands are filled with people trying to work on their own bicycles with the shop's tools.

If enough qualified people do join the Recycle-A-Bike's board, they will need to help run the organization in the short term, as the longer-term plan is to find a new executive director.

After the group posted on Instagram, calling for new board members and volunteers, a few candidates surfaced, but not enough to keep it alive. The "key kind" of people they want to attract are in the highest demand, he said.

In addition to general leadership, the board needs a few people with specific skill sets for the board, as well as volunteer teachers and people to manage the shop.

Among those board positions are openings for two people with experience in education and program development. That means people to build out the group's educational programming, like the workshop for high school students to become bike savvy or the program to teach people how to refurbish their own bicycles.

The group also needs someone to engage with the community and run its social media platforms.

"If we can't get the right people, we're going to have to close down," Olivo said.

Anyone interested in joining the Recycle-A-Bike board or volunteering for the group can contact Olivo at jolivo@recycleabike.org.

The board is seeking two program development members, a treasurer and a community relations/outreach member.

The group also accepts bicycle donations and can be contacted at (401) 525-1822

One of the primary roles the group needs to fill are teachers for its programs for young people. In past years, the program has taken high school students through an eight-to-12-week course on bicycles, from maintenance to safe riding. The last time the program rolled through town was spring of 2021.

"By the time it finished, the teachers were saying these people could find work in a bike shop, a few as mechanics and all of them as knowledgeable sales people," Olivo said.

The most recent program, a six-week course called "Know Your Multi-Tool," helped people learn how to repair common problems on the road using a small tool kit. 

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Another program that has been sidelined as skilled volunteers have dropped out is the build a bike program, where over a 12-week period participants strip a run-down bicycle and put it back together better than before.

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Before the pandemic, the group held three to four programs a year, lasting months at a time. Now, they can get one to two a year if they're lucky, he said.

"I always say, teacher skills are the first priority, and being a mechanic is second," he said.

While one of Recycle-A-Bike's main purposes is to educate children and adults on the joys of bicycling, bicycle safety and mechanics, the group also runs a storefront in Olneyville at 1911 Westminster St., where they sell refurbished bicycles that were donated.

They also run a tool-sharing program and shop, to help maintain bikes and educate the public.

The shop is currently open from 5 to 8 p.m. on Tuesdays, 3 to 6 p.m. on Thursdays and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturdays. There is also a community workbench available for people who want to do their own bike maintenance and repair.

The group also offers free bicycles to children.

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Reach reporter Wheeler Cowperthwaite at wcowperthwaite@providencejournal.com or follow him on Twitter @WheelerReporter.