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The Optimist Club's bike repair and leasing program has been helping children for more than 20 years in Great Falls.

This year, the involvement of the Center for Mental Health is making a difference in a whole new way.

One of the program volunteers, Ray Reed, suffers from bipolar disorder; he describes it as "My mind races like a train going across a track, the more boxes are on there, it's like a picture in my head."

But working on bikes helps to keep Reed's mind off of his disorder and focused on something he enjoys. He noted, "A sense of purpose...it keeps me occupied."

This summer, the Optimist Club teamed up with the Center for Mental Health to allow mental health clients to work on bikes.

Counselor Bill Gange says it gives clients an opportunity to learn job skills and interact with the community.

Gange said, "They seem a lot happier up here, gets them out of their comfort zone from the center. They learn a lot, skills, like how to work with their hands, customer skills."

And although it's plenty of fun, the volunteers work hard to meet their quota of at least 30 bikes a week.

On Saturdays, the bikes are given out to kids for a minimal registration fee. For the volunteers, giving them away is the best part of the week.

Bikes are given away every Saturday during the summer on a first-come, first-serve basis.