Bike Elf is the brainchild of Dewayne Wilson who grew up in the 1960’s in Humble, TX. The third of four children, Dewayne lived on his bicycle from first thing in the morning till the street light came on and his Dad called him inside in the evening.

Dewayne’s first bike was a red Sear’s Flightliner just like the picture–headlights and all. This bike represented his freedom and his independence. On his bike, Dewayne could go anywhere he wanted without anyone’s assistance…. Dewayne rode neighborhood streets, trails in the woods, and the 15 miles to Kingwood (the next neighborhood) to see school friends and girlfriends.

In December 2014, the only Angels left on the Salvation Army Tree at Starbucks in Maryville were kids who wanted bikes and Dewayne decided that he could not imagine growing up without a bike. By December 31, 2014 he had set a personal goal to scour garage sales, Craigslist, etc. and have Bike Elf’s first Bicycle Pick Up100 bikes refurbished to give to underprivileged children by Christmas 2015.

On the morning of January 5, 2015 Dewayne texted a response to one Craigslist bicycle advertisement and emailed another. Carolina called Dewayne from the text message and said that he had also emailed her boyfriend Rusty. She asked if Dewayne really wanted two bicycles? Dewayne replied that he really wanted 100, but he had to start somewhere and he explained his idea.

That afternoon Dewayne and Leigh Wilson drove to Maryville, TN to pick up the two bicycles. Rusty and Carolina said if Dewayne would buy the two bicycles they advertised they would donate the third bicycle to his goal. On the Lamar Alexander Pkwy driving home to Townsend with three bicycles in the back of the truck, Dewayne and Leigh came up with the name Bike Elf and decided to create a Facebook page when they got home. The rest is history that is outlined on the pages of this web site.