Excerpts from wgntv.com:
After 27 years of service, a Chicago firefighter is finally hanging up his gear and retiring. But for Kirkland Flowers, the work at Engine 16 Firehouse has never truly ended.
When he noticed that kids in underserved neighborhoods near the firehouse were skipping school, Kirkland came up with a creative solution: a bike program. He used kindness, humor, and even a trusty bike wrench to bring them back to class.
The FITCH program, which stands for Firefighters/Paramedics In The Community Helping, began when Kirkland saw more kids hanging around the station than attending school. He offered them a deal: bring your report card, and if you have good grades and perfect attendance, you get a bicycle.
Word spread quickly. Bikes started coming in from all over—new, old, and refurbished. They arrived in every color and size, and soon, kids were racing to the firehouse with their report cards in hand.
At one school, where attendance had been as low as 20%, it took just eight months for the number to jump to 45%, and within a year, it reached 92%. That was 25 years ago, and since then, the program has grown far beyond that single school.
Kirkland expanded the FITCH program to other low-income schools across Chicago. Over the years, the firehouse has given away hundreds of thousands of bikes. Time Magazine once called him the “Pied Piper†of the community, a title that speaks to how much the kids adore him.
The program was especially vital during the time when the Chicago housing projects—like the Robert Taylor Homes and Ida B. Wells—were still standing. At the height of the program, firefighters were serving over 11,000 people in just a few blocks, and many kids were left without guidance or structure.
For Kirkland, the success of the program lies in its simple premise: kids have to earn their bikes by staying in school. It's not just about getting a bike—it's about showing them that effort leads to reward.
Last month, the station gave out 70 bikes to students in some of the toughest neighborhoods on the West Side. And this isn’t the first time Kirkland has taken the program beyond Chicago. In 2010, after the devastating earthquake in Haiti, he and six other firefighters transported ambulances filled with medical supplies and bikes to the country, where a bike was considered a precious treasure.
Now 63, Kirkland recently retired from the fire department. But he still comes into the station regularly to fix tools and tune up bikes. He believes that giving kids something to look forward to—like a bike—can help keep them away from the dangers that surround their neighborhoods.
In retirement, his greatest reward is seeing the joy on the faces of children who ride off on their new bikes. “If you could see their face when they walk out of here with their bike… it’s like sunshine,†he says. “You can’t explain it. You have to be here to see it.â€
Even now, the station offers a unique incentive: kids can rent a bike for just 25 cents a day, and when they return it, they get their quarter back. It’s a small gesture, but one that reinforces the value of responsibility and hard work.
As he prepares to step down, Kirkland is looking for someone to take over the FITCH program—a legacy he’s spent decades building. For him, it’s not just about bikes. It’s about hope, opportunity, and the power of a simple idea to change lives.
Thanks, Dan.
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