New Haven Independent

The Saturday morning session was organized by community volunteers (including this reporter) in conjunction with parents from the school’s PTO, like Genie Flores (pictured), who brought their children and stayed to help.

Little Kenneth Villot checks out the work being done by a headless (in the photo only) Raphael Cornier.

And here’s Raf (head intact) working on another bike.

Meanwhile, David Streever was kept very busy fitting helmets to 29 young heads, including that of Noah Villot, and drilling into the kids and parents that the helmet must be worn straight, not tipped back, in order to protect the forehead and the brains inside.

Another volunteer does brain imaging in her day job, and explained that the skull protecting the brain is like an eggshell protecting the egg inside — in other words, very fragile, and why it’s so important to wear a helmet. That made quite an impression on some of the kids.

An obstacle course was set up in the parking lot, and, once their bikes were repaired, the kids got to ride it, practicing maneuvering, braking, and riding on the right-hand side of the “road” demarcated with chalk.

Kenny Driffin (second from left) was another parent who helped organize the jamboree. After almost 30 kids got their bikes fixed, their helmets fitted, and their rear bike lights attached, he pronounced it “a beautiful day.”