It was an awfully big decision for such a little boy.

Five-year-old Chase Stickler of Waterloo stood in the back parking lot of St. Paul Lutheran Church Saturday, surrounded by bicycles.

Big ones. Little ones. Black ones with lime green day-glo lettering. Blue ones with racing motifs sketched on the handlebars.

One of those bikes would go home with him, thanks to the generosity of the Lutheran church members.

The Saturday bike giveaway was one of several events the church has undertaken within the last year, all of them meant to reach out to members of the community who may most need help.

“Spirituality involves more than just going to church,” the Rev. Mike Poole, pastor of St. Paul, explained. “With the back-to-school giveaway, we looked at education. With the Christmas one (event), we looked at dignity and with this one, instead of watching video games and television, we focused on health. It’s a holistic approach to things, that’s kind of it.”

The gesture of kindness did not go unappreciated. While young Chase was too busy looking — and perhaps a bit too shy— to say much, his grandmother, Martha Knipp of Waterloo said she was grateful. She could not afford to give her grandson a new bike, helmet and other safety gear. She was glad that people who could, did.

“This is wonderful,” she said. “This is just a wonderful thing for them to do for these kids. There are so many kids out there who need these bikes and I hope they all get one.”

Amanda Johnson and her fianc/, Shawn Wilson, came with their daughter, Brittany Wilson, who is 3.

“I’m excited,” Johnson said. “She needs one and the helmet. This helps us a lot.”

Poole said 125 bikes were given away the first hour of the event.

“I expected they would go fast, but maybe not quite this fast,” he mused.

Poole said he hopes that when each family leaves hauling a bicycle away with them, that they realize that some gestures, made in loving kindness, can produce great outcomes.

“Where they ever come to church here or not, I hope what they leave with is the idea that one person can make a difference. No matter what church you go to or if you go to church or not, you can still make a difference.”