Sports create fellowship and can increase social trust, including the ability to show empathy for others. There is no more valuable way to create social trust in sports than through community-based sports participation because of the social, emotional, physical and academic benefits that come from physically active children. The following article comes from the Aspen Institute’s State of Play Baton Rouge report. The report assesses the opportunities and barriers for more children to access sports and physical activity in East Baton Rouge Parish, Louisiana.

Kids can’t keep a secret for long. Fifteen years ago, Dustin LaFont was working in his yard when a neighborhood boy approached him, asking for help to fix a bike. LaFont, a public school teacher who had learned from his mother the value of getting things done, lent a hand — and, true to form, shared some life lessons in the process.

Word of the boy’s new ride spread quickly, and soon, other children were knocking on LaFont’s door, eager to repair their own bikes. What began as a simple favor grew into Front Yard Bikes (FYB), a grassroots effort that has transformed into a full-fledged nonprofit and community hub focused on youth empowerment, skill-building and civic engagement.

Before long, LaFont left his teaching job to run FYB full time. He opened a bike retail shop and developed a range of programs designed to keep kids engaged, active and confident. Children learn valuable skills and gain a sense of belonging.

To stay active, they cycle to FYB locations and gather for rides. They have formed groups to work on tricks, including riding long distances doing wheelies, front tires removed altogether. Many children at FYB said they aren’t interested in sports, but they love riding bikes.

With two after-school sites and a full-service bike shop in Mid City, FYB has become the largest community bike shop in the state. At the heart of the nonprofit is a clever system LaFont created to give kids a sense of purpose: Children earn credits by learning bike repair and other skills, which they can then trade for services and products, like bike upgrades. The model fosters not only technical know-how but also responsibility and self-reliance.

Through initiatives like its Earn-a-Bike program, community garden projects, internships and weekly rides, FYB has already improved thousands of young lives. In 2022 alone, the organization served 359 kids, with 275 bikes earned. LaFont estimates that well over 10,000 bikes have rolled out of FYB since the program’s inception.

But it’s about more than just bikes. FYB teaches children about healthy living through its community gardens on Terrace Street. It offers paid internships and the opportunity to become certified bike mechanics through elective courses.

With a rise in bike riding in Baton Rouge and around the country, the children can use their skills to get jobs, or as a foundation for learning more skills to work in other fields, such as repairing heavy equipment.

Now, FYB is poised for yet another expansion. LaFont’s organization has teamed up with three other local nonprofits (Big Buddy, Humanities Amped and Line4Line) to start Youth City Lab. A seed grant from Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation kickstarted the project, which has since drawn over $1 million in funding from the city and private philanthropists.

The plan? To convert a former church and rug shop into a multipurpose hub where children can gather, study, acquire job skills and advocate for themselves in the broader community.

FYB has already set up its retail shop at the Government Street site in Mid City, and the partnering nonprofits are providing services at the location in Mid City, where FYB is partnering with nonprofits to build out Youth City Lab. Renovations on the building are set to begin in early 2025 and will shift the Youth City Lab effort into a higher gear.

Jon Solomon is Community Impact Director of the Aspen Institute’s Project Play initiative. Jon can be reached at jon.solomon@aspeninstitute.org.