Mission

The Ohio City Bicycle Co-op (OCBC) is a non-profit bicycle education center with a small professional staff and many skilled volunteers.  In our well-equipped 12,000 square foot bicycle mechanic shop, OCBC upcycles donated bicycles to make them safe and reliable for community members. We teach classes on bike riding and repair skills and lead community programs such as fix-athons, bike valet parking, and group bike rides. During the week, OCBC also runs a “bicycle thrift store” for refurbished bikes, as well as new and used bicycle parts, clothing, and accessories. Through volunteering and our Pay What You Can programs, we provide free and affordable bicycles, repairs, and accessories (such as helmets and locks) to cyclists who seek access, or meet eligibility guidelines. Simply put, “we help people use bicycles.“

Organizational Focus

As a 501(c)(3) organization and responsible community partner in Greater Cleveland, we strive to maintain organizational focus to best serve our clients – culminating in our Mission, Vision and Values statement.

The OCBC Staff and Board of Directors collaborate on this statement in a 3-year cycle, along with the organization’s strategic plan, in order to improve and expand our work with the needs of the community. We publish this document to the public for transparency, and you can read our 2023 Mission, Vision and Values here.

Board of Directors

We’re currently looking for new board members! If you’re interested in joining, please reach out to us at board@ohiocitycycles.org. Our areas of greatest need are accounting and legal.

For six years, a bicycle was Meredith’s main way of getting around: to work, to the grocery store, and everywhere else. That time showed Meredith what it means to depend on a bike. A flat tire can make you late for work. A dark, unsafe route is the only way home. Repairs can’t wait until the weekend. It also showed a gap in who gets seen as a “cyclist.” Recreational cycling culture has long been dominated by white men in lycra. The many Clevelanders who ride out of necessity, to reach jobs, appointments and families, often look very different, and their needs are left out of conversations about cycling. Meredith joined the Ohio City Bicycle Co-op board to help make sure those riders have the tools, skills and support they need, and to build bike communities where everyone who rides, for any reason, feels they belong.

Professionally, Meredith is a Senior Infrastructure Engineer at PayPal where she is a technical leader, and mentors engineers from groups underrepresented in tech. She also works with the Forest City Tech Coop here in Cleveland, helping build accessible technologies to support worker-owned cooperatives, small non-profits and grassroots organizations.

Whether the work is about networks or neighborhoods, Meredith is passionate most passionate about systems change. That means looking past individual fixes to the structures that decide who gets access and who gets left out. Meredith brings that view to the board, with a focus on making OCBC’s work reach the people who rely on bikes most.

Nick’s first interaction with OCBC was taking the tune-up class in 2024, and he knew almost immediately that he wanted to be more involved with this inclusive and community-driven organization. In his career, Nick leads a data engineering and business intelligence team at a local bank and has professional experience in process improvement, product development, and IT. He hopes to use these skills to amplify OCBC’s mission. You can find Nick riding around Cleveland’s streets, Metroparks, mountain bike trails, and indoor bike parks.

Nick, a graduate of Kent State University, holds degrees in Business Administration and Business Marketing. His passion for community engagement led him to the OCBC, where he was recommended through Business Volunteers Unlimited—an organization that connects businesses and individuals to impactful nonprofits in Northeast Ohio. As an Enterprise Risk Management analyst at a local Fortune 500 company, Nick brings professionalism and dedication to his work. Outside of his career, he is deeply committed to volunteering with various organizations throughout the Cleveland area. In his free time, Nick enjoys taking leisurely bike rides through the scenic streets of the Tremont and Ohio City neighborhoods.

Marcia has a strong background in outdoor experiential learning and nonprofit leadership in NEO.  She is also a lifelong globetrotter and combines her keen interest in people, cultures, and adventure at every turn. Even though she got sent home from New Zealand in March 2020 due to Covid — and then again from Hawaii in 2022 due to a fall and big ouch — she hopes to get it right next time! Marcia is pleased to roll up her sleeves and advance, together with other board and staff, the mission and good work of OCBC in our community.  Marcia also serves on a second board, Council of International Fellowships/USA. You can find her on her fold up touring bike, stepping out on some remote waterway, high altitude trail, open road, freezing tundra or scorching desert, visiting her far flung kids/grandkids, or ‘Facilitating through Story”, her next entrepreneurial venture.

Chris Littman serves as the Executive Director of Professional Programs at the Case School of Engineering. He oversees a diverse portfolio that includes 17 master’s degree programs, 13 PhD programs, and 5 online degrees, managing key areas such as marketing, recruitment, and career placement for over 800 graduate students. Previously, Chris was the Second Vice President at Citi, where he managed $150 million in assets and provided institutional clients with cash management solutions. He holds an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the Weatherhead School of Management at Case Western Reserve University and a BA in History and Economics from Bucknell University.

Paul became interested in bicycles early when his love for taking things apart turned to bikes. He started volunteering at the co-op with his family pre-Covid. Paul joined the board early in 2025 with the aim of focusing on outreach to advance fundraising at the organization. He earned an undergraduate degree in Mechanical Engineering at Case Western Reserve University and followed on with an MBA from the same. He is retired from KeyBanc Capital Markets where he was an equity research analyst, and now spends his time volunteering at the co-op, biking, hiking, skiing, fishing, woodworking and traveling.

Greg has spent more than 15 years in the events industry with Cleveland Clinic – working here in Cleveland, Ohio as well as a 6.5 year appointment to Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. His work involves project management to complex and high-profile events that include everything from small, intimate gatherings, to public-facing multi-thousand-attendee events. From an early age, Greg fell in love with cycling as a mountain biker on the east coast. After relocating to Cleveland, he traded dirt trails for bike commuting and fast moving pacelines training for long distance rides. Greg’s passion for cycling led him to OCBC in 2010 where he took the classes and invested time as a regular volunteer wrenching on bikes. He served on the board as OCBC moved to its current location and was later elected Board President. After returning to Cleveland, he was committed to immediately restarting volunteer work at OCBC and supporting its mission to serve the community. Greg is no stranger to volunteer work and non-profit boards, having served on a number of boards while maintaining regular volunteer commitments that leverage his background in events, marketing/communications, and project management. He holds a Bachelor’s of Music Theory and a Master’s in Music Composition.

Funders, Partners, and Supporters

Ohio City Bicycle Co-op is proud to be supported by many organizations who fund, partner with, and support our work. The contributions from these organizations help us to realize our mission throughout the Greater Cleveland community!

Funders

Partners

Supporters