The people of Bike First!

From middle schoolers to retirees, volunteers from all over the region spend a magical week helping individuals achieve an important childhood rite of passage—independent bicycling. We depend on this hard-working, quick-walking, and often fast-running corps of volunteer community members. Some of us work year-round, taking a break in the late fall before we start up again.

  • Ann Donaca

    Inspired by her own son’s struggle to learn to ride, Ann is the director and one of the two founding organizers of Bike First!. In addition to a rewarding and demanding schedule as Vice Principal of Multnomah Learning Academy, Ann handles fundraising and community advocacy and customizes the skills balance in each camp.

  • Cody Sullivan

    Cody is the inspiration behind Bike First! He is our lead motivator and everyone’s best friend. Cody was the first person with Down syndrome in the state of Oregon to graduate from a university in 2018. This news spread throughout the world as it went viral to many different countries. He supports the Portland Trail Blazers, the University of Oregon Ducks, and MANY other sports teams. Cody has been described as "pure joy".

  • Dr. Angela Vossenkuhl

    A dedicated mother and educator, Angela is the business manager for Bike First! as well as being Program Director for the Undergraduate College of Education at Eastern Oregon University. Angela manages t-shirts, participant gifts, and commemorative photos.

  • Beth Madison

    Beth is a retired public school principal and serves as the finance manager for Bike First! and the treasurer of Northwest Disability Support. After 33 years as an Oregon educator, she now enjoys a mobile life centered on family, friends, and outdoor living. Service will always be at the core of her being.

  • Bobbi Sullivan

    Bobbi received her undergraduate degree in Behavioral Psychology from Saint Mary’s College of California in 2020. She has worked for Bike First! since it began in 2006 and is Cody’s younger sister. Currently, Bobbi is a teacher in Portland and a professional artist. Bobbi wears many hats for Bike First!. She is a floor director and works year-round as a volunteer & participant coordinator.

  • Heather Hunt

    Heather has been with the Bike First! family since 2016. She is a leader and works year-round as a volunteer & participant coordinator. Heather completed her undergraduate degree in Elementary Education at Oregon State in June 2022 and her master's degree in special education at Portland State in June 2024. Heather currently works as a special education teacher in Portland.

  • Walt Custer

    Walt has been part of the Bike First! family since its birth in 2005. He transports the bikes to Portland, Oregon, from Sonoma, California, each summer. Walt is our bike mechanic extraordinaire. He not only ensures that participants’ bikes have the best fittings, but he tunes up the entire fleet for each family. Walt is our hero.

  • Nate Hallquist

    Nate is the assistant bike mechanic for Bike First! and has lived in Portland for 18 years. After serving in the Navy for six years, he came to the Pacific NW and worked in the semiconductor industry for over 16 years. Nate has always enjoyed working with his hands, building and fixing things. Nate looks forward to Bike First! every year as an opportunity to help people get their bikes ready and safe for the road. Nate is currently a stay-at-home dad of three children he adopted in 2016 with his wife, Tiffy. They love being part of the Bike First! family.

  • Emma Flynn

    Emma (she/her/ella) has been with Bike First! family since 2009. She served as a volunteer and leader for several years before starting as a floor director in 2018. Emma is passionate about inclusion, thanks to Bike First!. If you see Emma at Bike First!, make sure to give her a crisp high-five or show her your favorite dance move!

  • Dave Stewart

    Dave is the safety director and behavior coordinator for Bike First!. He has been working with Bike First! since 2016. Dave is passionate about inclusion and cycling. His daily bike commute is 38 miles to his teaching job as an elementary behavior specialist in the Oregon City School District. With his oldest son, he puppeteers. He is a native Oregonian and lives with his wife, two sons, and two German shepherds. Combining cycling, teaching, and puppets makes Bike First! Dave’s favorite week of the year.

  • Owen McLafferty

    Owen started volunteering for Bike First! as a fourth grader in 2007 and is the assistant safety director and a leader for Bike First!. After graduating from the University of Oregon in 2018 with a Bachelor of Science in Business, he has pursued a career in operations and now lives and works in the Portland area. Owen loves sneakers, music, and sports. He also coaches baseball at his alma mater, Grant High School.

  • Sammy Carey

    Sammy (she/her) joined the Bike First! family in 2017. She is a leader and a part of the safety team. Sammy has an undergraduate degree in Kinesiology and is trained in behavior support and crisis intervention. She now works at an elementary school as a behavior learning specialist. Her secret talents are her top-notch Voldemort impression and her ability to never run out of dad jokes!

  • Harrison Steinbrecher

    My name is Harrison Steinbrecher and I was a participant in June 2007. I'm the DJ. It's so much fun to be the DJ and be able to play what the riders want. If you have a request, send me an email to hjhs4694@gmail.com and I can put it together for you. I enjoy doing the bike camp and making friends with this camp. In my spare time, I work as a nutrition services assistant for Portland Public Schools. I'm currently at Ainsworth Elementary School. I like to camp and travel.

  • Griffin Carroll

    Griffin first participated in Bike First! at age 9 and again at age 10, and then returned as a volunteer (along with his brother Myles) when was 18. He LOVES the tandem bikes and still appreciates the tandem Walt altered for extra safety. Griff loves being part of the Bike First! team because the leaders make the experience safe and fun for everyone. Griffin loves singing karaoke. He is also a huge sports fan, particularly loves to play basketball and soccer and is a proud player on this year’s Timbers Unified team. When not playing sports, he enjoys playing games and watching superhero movies.

From Our Volunteers

“I just wanted to say I had the best time at camp. I got so much more out of it than I would have ever expected! I’ve never worked with kids with disabilities before, and I thought I wouldn’t be able to be good at it because I’m impatient, but I ended up genuinely having so much fun. This camp has opened up my heart so much and I’m so grateful to have experienced this week. Thank you so much!!!”
— Emma, Volunteer Spotter

Bike First! was one of the coolest things I have ever done. It truly inspired me to be so much more in the moment and choose happiness and love in my everyday life. It has shown me confidence and given me a certain determination to help my community, take risks, and try new things. Working with kids has always been a passion of mine, and bike first helped me prove to myself that I belong working alongside and with not just kids, but people.
— Volunteer Spotter for Many Years

"Five years ago, during the latter days of June 2015, my father dropped off fourteen-year-old me outside the doors of Concordia University’s gym. The night before, a Sunday, I attended an orientation meeting for all volunteers participating in the Bike First! summer camp. The camp itself is unlike any other throughout the country. Bike First! targets a specific demographic: those who are differently-abled; these disabilities can be cognitive, physical, or behavioral. During the camp, youth and adults embark on a life-altering journey as they learn how to ride a bike. Volunteers provide the skills necessary to ride a two-wheeler while developing inexpressible relationships with their assigned riders. I’d like you, the reader, to pause for just one moment and imagine what fifteen-year-old Noah was thinking: a young, inexperienced teen who, prior to this camp, possessed no tangible experience working with people with disabilities. As I walked through those gym doors on that Monday in late June, my life was unequivocally changed. I can assert that my volunteering at Bike First! is one of the most salient reasons behind my continued development as a human being.

Before I began volunteering for Bike First!, I’m not ashamed to admit that I certainly failed to realize the necessity and subsequent implementation of inclusion. Bike riding is a mundane concept; myriad people take this life-changing experience for granted. You and I learned to bike for a plethora of reasons: becoming independent, the ability to hang out with friends and family, to have a mode of transportation. Each biker, before attending camp, is required to complete a questionnaire. Towards the end of the application, there is a question that has led me to routinely ruminate deeply on the meaning of this work: “Why does your child want to ride?” Many of the answers to this question have brought me close to tears; all of them are centered upon one thing: the concept of normalcy. For some, it’s wanting to be like their brother or sister. For others, they long to play with friends without having to have their parents commute with them. And for even more, they just want to be like everyone else. Throughout the entirety of their lives, many of these children have been embattled with constant differences and societal exclusion. Getting on the bike is an indescribably large first step, an opportunity that I’m immensely appreciative to help them achieve. At the end of camp, to see them ride with smiles while their parents are reduced to tears or joyfully yelling at the top of their lungs. This is why I volunteer.

I have dedicated approximately 235 hours to this camp. When I began volunteering at Bike First!, I was an untested, eager teen; I wanted to make an impact within this program. I had participated in a variety of programs and volunteering commitments before this initiative began, but I’d never experienced something like this program which has continually forced me to grow. Midway through my first year, I had several lead volunteers talk privately with me; they informed me that I possessed a unique ability to connect with the campers. After that conversation, I promised myself that I’d learn everything there was on how to best connect with these youth, and by extension, foster inclusion within my own community. Each year I gradually improved my skills; my experiences throughout the years, both beneficial and negative, deepened my perspective and allowed me to better serve the riders I taught. In year four, I became a QuickStart leader; QuickStart children begin mid-way through the camp, as they’ve already developed some of the skills necessary to ride. This experience gave me a taste and a newfound passion for working alongside individuals with disabilities.

This past June, the leader cohort nominated me to become a full-time leader for this year’s camp. I was in charge of working with five riders and over 10 volunteers. I was the sole communicator to the parents on their child’s progress, taught them how to handle lessons following the conclusion of camp, and was the first point of contact for my riders. I’m proud to state that all five of my participants made it onto two wheels, yet I attribute all of the credit to the sheer dedication and drive they exhibited. For several of the riders, it was a struggle. Tantrums were had, crying occurred, and there were slip-ups along the way. Nevertheless, we persisted. One child I worked with refused to touch the bike and had massive outbursts all throughout the camp; on the final day, my team and I were able to coax him onto the bike, upon which he began smiling and rode around with his sister. I collapsed into his mother’s arms, overwhelmed with emotion. This is why I volunteer.

My life, and future goals, are radically different than they were five years ago. I met one of my friends through this program, Cody Sullivan; he recently was the first person with Down syndrome in the state of Oregon’s history to graduate from a four-year university. I promised myself two years ago that once I complete college and enter the workforce, I would adopt a young child with Down syndrome. These are just a few of myriad examples of the changes that have occurred throughout my life. I will continue to devote my time to this camp every summer into the foreseeable future, as these children are living proof of the power of commitment and volunteering. I’ve known several of the participants for all five years of my tenure, and it’s been an absolute blessing to grow alongside them."

—Noah, Bike First! 2019

  • "The heart of a volunteer is never measured in size, but by the depth of the commitment to make a difference in the lives of others."

    DeAnn Hollis