HCA HealthONE Swedish employees build bikes to surprise Englewood second graders
Dec 16, 2024
ENGLEWOOD, Colo. Employees at HCA HealthONE Swedish built 70 bicycles with the help of the nonprofit Wish for Wheels in order to surprise a group of second graders at Alice Terry Elementary School.Scott Davis, CEO of HCA HealthONE Swedish, is proud of his team of volunteers.Its just an opportunity for us to get together as a senior team and a leadership team, he said. We always like to do something at the end of the year, and it's a great opportunity to give back. The bikes were built just off the lobby of the main entrance of the hospital. Each bike was put together in less than 30 minutes, rivaling the elves' production rate at Santa's workshop in the North Pole. Incredibly efficient, remarked Erin Petersen, director of construction management at the hospital. That's how we do things here at Swedish. We get our leaders together, and they show them what the mission is, and they take it to the next level.The hospitals team spends time to make sure that the bikes are going to students who could really use them. Schools are identified that really have a little higher need than other schools in our area, said Davis. The school is chosen based on that need, and certainly a partnership with our Englewood School District. A group of second graders at Alice Terry Elementary ended the school day by walking out to the parking lot behind the school and being greeted with a brand-new bike. Their faces light up when they walk out and they see a parking lot full of bikes with helmets hanging off of all of them, Petersen said. It's unbelievably rewarding.