THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1997, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Thursday, January 16, 1997 TAG: 9701160232
SECTION: LOCAL PAGE: B1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY NANCY YOUNG, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHESAPEAKE LENGTH: 71 lines
Hard work really does pay off.
A couple of weeks ago, 13-year-old Michael Carlo might not have thought so.
In early December, after three months of working and saving every spare penny, Michael managed to accumulate the $170 needed to buy himself a bike.
``I was really proud of myself,'' said Michael, who is a student at Great Bridge Intermediate School. ``I was kind of surprised that I could earn the money without spending it.''
Then, on New Year's Day, Michael's new bike was stolen.
``He worked so hard for that,'' said Michael's mother, Cathy. ``He didn't have it for but maybe two weeks. . . . He was devastated.''
So Cathy Carlo took pen in hand and wrote a letter to the thief, in care of The Virginian-Pilot's letters-to-the-editor column.
``If this was something that you wanted so badly and needed so much that you had to steal it, I hope you enjoy the fruits of my son's labor,'' Carlo wrote in a letter published Jan. 11. ``Every time you ride it, remember where it came from and know that your happiness broke my son's heart.''
Michael said his mother wrote the letter in hope that the thief's parents would see it and realize the bike was stolen, but he really didn't expect that to happen.
``I never thought I'd see it again,'' Michael said.
One thing Michael was glad about was how all his friends rallied around him and helped him look for the bike. It was one of those friends who spotted the thief riding by on Michael's bike. Together they chased the thief, who is also a student at Great Bridge Intermediate, and recovered the bike.
``I was just happy to get my bike back,'' Michael said.
What Michael didn't know then was that he had dozens of friends he didn't even know he had.
Those who read Cathy Carlo's letter to the editor, including those at Operation Blessing and the Judeo-Christian Outreach Center, all came to the same simple conclusion: a kid who worked hard to earn enough money for a bike should have a bike.
So, individually, they all offered to buy him another one.
``I've spent the last couple of days calling people back,'' said Carlo, who added she had only managed to call a fraction of the dozens of people who called. ``This has definitely restored his (Michael's) faith in human nature.''
For 69-year-old Leslie Davis, reading about the 13-year-old's plight rang some bells.
``The first bike I ever had I had to work for. My family couldn't afford it. It was $19.95 at the Western Auto. I put a dollar down and a dollar a week until I paid it off,'' Davis said. ``I would have hated to have my bike stolen, hard as I worked for it. . . . I was just interested in helping the kid.''
Likewise, Rick Mercadante, owner of Bike Line bike shops, read the letter and was similarly moved - particularly by the fact that Michael had worked to earn his bike.
``I get a lot of kids in the shop with their parents. They're just given (their bikes). They don't have to work for it so they don't appreciate it as much,'' Mercadante said. ``These kids are married to their bikes. . . . Stealing a kid's bike that he worked so hard for, it's just a cruel blow.''
But what started as cruel ended better than Michael and his mother ever dreamed it could.
``I'm going to have to write another letter to the editor and thank everybody,'' said Carlo. ``It just touches your heart.'' ILLUSTRATION: Color photo by IAN MARTIN/The Virginian-Pilot
Michael Carlo, 13, holds his recovered bike, for which he had saved
$170 to buy. His mother's letter to the editor reporting the bike's
theft brought lots of offers from people willing to give him a new
one.
KEYWORDS: STOLEN BIKE