Eleven new bikes were presented to students at Edgecomb Eddy School on June 7.

Now an annual tradition, this is the third year bikes have been given to students who enroll in a program, Bikes for Books, that encourages reading and awards bikes near the end of the school year.

The Huffy bikes, donated by the Bay View Masonic Lodge in East Boothbay, are ordered specially for the winning students, according to their gender and size. Presenting the bikes were coordinators Stuart Smith, Lodge Master, and his son, Alexander, a senior at Boothbay Region High School. For the last two years, Alex has been assembling the bikes for the presentation.

“Last year I got called away on business right at the wrong time. So Alex had to put them all together himself.”

Alex said he was glad that this year he was able to enlist a friend, Jacob Wilson, to help him.

“The whole idea is to get the kids to read books,” Stuart Smith said. “It’s up to the teachers at each school to make the decision of who will get a bike. It’s done differently in every school. Of course you want to reward the kids who read the most, but the teachers want to reward kids who really put in an effort, too.”

Principal Lisa Clarke said the majority of students who participate in the program get a bike. “The Rotary Club has been very generous with donations for the bikes. Some children choose not to participate, either because they have a bike at home, or they don’t love reading. But it’s always exciting for them to see the ones who do get one.

“Hopefully the enthusiasm will carry over to next year, and there will be more participants.”

She said the teachers have to approve the books the students choose, and the students keep journals to demonstrate that they’ve read and comprehended the books. “We want to set it up so that it encourages them to read, and not make it too challenging. We want them to develop a love for reading.”

A hanging plant, donated to the school as a fund raiser, was won by Emily Cowing.

There will be 22 bikes presented to the most voracious readers at Boothbay Region Elementary School on June 20.

Bikes for Books was initiated by the Seaside Masonic Lodge, also in East Boothbay, in 2013. In 2014, the Bay View Masonic Lodge continued the program, awarding bikes to BRES students. In 2015, the program branched out to Edgecomb Eddy and Southport Central schools.

By the close of the 2017 school year, 33 bikes will have been awarded to readers at local schools. Smith said the Huffy bike company has “stepped up and given us a special price for this program. They have been good to us.”

Fundraising is a vital part of the program. Donations may be sent to the Bay View Mason Lodge: RR 96, East Boothbay, ME 04544, call at (207) 633-5053, or email Stuart Smith for more information at stuart@seguinsoftware.com.