Jacobo Saucedo, whose dad taught him how to ride a bike, received a bicycle of his own for the first time Saturday.

Saucedo, 9, said he’s excited to ride around, have fun and be able to get from place to place faster using his new bike. He said that learning he would receive the gift was good news.

“I was excited,” he said.

Saucedo was one of 62 children who received bikes Saturday at the Chauncey Swan parking ramp in Iowa City as part of a giveaway organized by United Action for Youth, partnering with Variety of Eastern Iowa, a Cedar Rapids-based children’s charity, and other organizations in the area.

Variety provided the bicycles through a program called Bikes for Kids. Organizers said they gave the bikes away for free to children who applied and who had never owned one before.

Saucedo’s mom, Alicia Iniguez of West Liberty, said the giveaway was a great opportunity for her family and she thinks some people may take having a bike for granted. For her family, she said a bike had been out-of-reach because of the cost.

“For some people, it’s not that easy,” she said.

UAY executive director Jannette Taylor said UAY reached out to children involved in local organizations before Saturday’s event to find those who had never owned bikes. She said organizers adjusted the bikes to fit each child and that the bikes came with locks and helmets.

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