Good ridings for Christmas

• Moore company donates hundreds of bikes to area school

By M. Scott Carter

Transcript Staff Writer

OKLAHOMA CITY — Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.

But for the record, he’s not jolly and fat — actually, he’s built more like a linebacker.

And he didn’t wear the red suit — he was dressed in brown slacks and a tan, corduroy jacket.

He did have a beard, though; think grayish-white.

And his eyes did twinkle.

But there was no sleigh — he drove a truck.

No reindeer and no North Pole workshop.

Instead, Santa owns a company that supplies directional drillers for the oilfield — a company right on the border between Moore and Oklahoma City.

And he wouldn’t know an elf if one kicked him in the leg.

But believe me, this Santa is real.

And his name is Darrell Husted.

Because this year, Virginia, Santa — that is, Husted — brought bikes, more than 300 of them, bikes of all colors and sizes for every student at Shidler Elementary School in south Oklahoma City.

“It’s just astounding,” said Sharon Creager, Shidler Elementary’s principal. “It’s a wonderful, wonderful gift for the kids from a wonderful family.”

Standing in front of a huge, white tent and surrounded by about 300 squirming pre-k through fifth-grade students Friday morning, Husted announced each child would receive a new bike for Christmas.

The kids had been told they were going to a fire drill.

Instead, they got bikes.

Brand new bikes.

The cheers were deafening.

“It’s just something every kid needs,” said Oklahoma City police officer Bryan Husted, Santa’s son. “I mean how cool is that, each kid at this school gets a bike.”

Spawned by Bryan’s earlier visits to the school to deliver presents there, and coupled with his fond memories of “spending hours and hours riding” his own bike, Bryan approached fellow police officer Dan Steward with a simple idea — a bike for every kid.

Yes, their idea was simple, but implementing it took a couple of years.

“I was helping get presents for the kids at Shidler a couple of years ago when I noticed the present lists had “no bikes” written on it,” Bryan said. “I asked about why bikes were listed that way and people told me that it’s often difficult and expensive to get a bike for everyone,” he said. “I just thought every kid needs a bike.”

And while getting every kid a bike wouldn’t be easy, Bryan had a secret weapon: his dad.

“Dan and I told my dad about the idea, and he thought it was a great,” he said. “The only problem was I told him too late.”

Another year passed and again, Bryan was a little late in getting his request in.

“But this year…,” he said, laughing. “I believe I pestered him about it every month.”

Then, sometime in October, Darrell Husted and his wife Becky, along with their friends and business associates, went to work. “We started early in the fall,” the older Husted said. “And everything fell into place.”

The bikes were purchased unassembled, and Husted’s staff put them together — all 303 of them.

Once assembled, the bikes were stored at a warehouse owned by Sondex until yesterday. The bikes also came with a helmet — a gift from DowdCo — and a bike lock given by Sondex.

Then, at 10 a.m. Friday with hundreds of people watching, the bikes were all given away.

Creager said when she first heard the idea she was shocked.

“The first thing I said was ‘Are you serious?’ I mean I was amazed.” But she was also willing. So, Creager, along with representatives of FaithWorks, Sondex and the Emmaus Baptist Church all joined forces to coordinate the giving; it was keeping the bikes a secret that proved to be a challenge.

“It was really hard not to tell,” she said. “There were only a handful of people that knew. I didn’t even tell the teachers. We wanted it to be a big surprise.”

Even Santa, himself, struggled.

As he spoke Friday about “giving” he slipped and mentioned bicycles. “I thought I’d really spilled it, right there,” Darrell Husted said later. “But I guess everything was OK.”

Everything was.

And, Husted, a quiet man who isn’t used to being placed in the role of Santa, smiled a huge, perfect Santa-type smile. “You know, you have to give of yourself before you ever understand how to receive,” he said quietly. “Watching those kids, well, it gives me a profound sense of gratitude that I’m able to do it.”

Still, one question remained: What motivates a Moore businessman to buy bikes for 300 kids he doesn’t even know?

“Why not?” Husted answered.

After all, it is Christmas.

M. Scott Carter366-3545scarter@normantranscript.com