Coeur d'Alene boy rides new wheels after bike theft

COEUR d’ALENE — Third grader Lewis Herndon only had his new bike for a few weeks before it was stolen. 

He was crushed.

So on Friday, the Bryan Elementary School student had no idea why his family brought him to the Coeur d’Alene police station until he saw a beautiful new bike being wheeled his way, courtesy of the Coeur d'Alene Police Foundation.

He immediately asked if he could go for a ride. After a couple of laps around the parking lot, joined by little brother Damon, Lewis reported back to his family. 

“It’s really fast,” he said, a smile growing slowly across his face. 

Rebecca Merrigan said losing the bike had been “a sad lesson” for Lewis to learn at such a young age. 

“It was such a bummer when it was stolen, it’s his freedom,” she said.   

Gabriel Herndon said he worried about Lewis coping after the theft happened. 

“He’s a really sweet kid and he’s always thinking about other people, so we were very sad when the lightning struck him that day," Herndon recalled. 

School Resource Officer Lee Morgan said after Herndon's bike was stolen, the Coeur d'Alene Police Foundation stepped in to make sure he didn't miss out on bike riding while the weather was good. 

“I really wanted to get his bike back. It was a mystery when the bike was stolen a couple of weeks ago in September,” Morgan said. 

The new Fitbikeco. bike came from Two Wheeler and Ski Dealer, Inc. 

“They had a bike that was perfect for him and that he could grow into it a little, too,” Morgan said. “He’s getting a helmet and a lock for his bike and since he likes to take his brother to school in the morning, we got him pegs for his bike." 

    Brothers Lewis Herndon and Damon Merrigan go for a ride after Lewis received a new bike from the Coeur d'Alene Police Foundation on Friday.
  

    Lewis Herndon, Lee Morgan, Kyle Erickson and Damon Merrigan pose with the new bike Lewis was gifted Friday by the Coeur d'Alene Police Foundation after his bike was stolen two weeks ago.