A community bike safety event is coming up in Federal Way from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday, July 26.

The event took place for the first time last year, and will be hosted by We Love Our City this year again at the Federal Way at the Family Life Center, 32275 32nd Ave. S.

Organizer Shelley Pauls told the Mirror that biking can be a great way to get kids outside, exercise and get fresh air while working on their health and coordination — and many other benefits.

At the same time, she shared that her biggest concern is that kids are safe while they are out biking in Federal Way.

“There’s a lot of traffic, we have a lot of apartments…we need to just make sure our kids are taught to be extra safe in such a congested area,” Pauls said.

While this is the second bike safety event she’s organized that is open to the whole community, another event was held in May 2025 in partnership with Mirror Lake Elementary School.

The Mirror Lake Elementary School bike safety event was done in partnership with the school’s PTA and Federal Way Public Schools.

If other schools are interested, Pauls said she’d like to help organize more events like this for individual school communities in the future.

At that event, they were able to donate 20 bikes through the organization Bikes for Kids, and also gave away free helmets from South King Fire.

The upcoming event on July 26 will include free bike and helmet giveaways while supplies last and even loaner bikes for kids to borrow during the event.

The focus is on safety, so kids will have a chance to go through an obstacle course to practice hand signals for turning and following important street signs.

A safety check station will give families the chance to double check that their bike is in top shape, and if it isn’t, a repair station will be available.

After making sure the bikes are in good working order, kids will also get the chance to spruce up their bikes with decorations too.

If a bike is too far gone or a family has outgrown it, there will be a recycle station for people to donate old bikes.

Community partners include Bicycle Rescue for Youth, Bikes for Kids, Family Life Center, Federal Way Community Center, the Bike Unit of the FWPD, Red Canoe Credit Union, Safe Kids Seattle, South King Fire and the South King Tool Library.

Pauls said that of the biking community in general, she has appreciated their kindness and support.

“There’s so many bike enthusiasts and they’re just very committed to safety and healthy exercise,” Pauls said.

Someday she said she hopes to see more bike paths and even a pump track in the city to continue to encourage even more kids and people of all ages to get outside and get some healthy exercise in Federal Way.

Families got the chance to learn about bike safety and even enter free bike giveaways at the Bike Safety Event at Mirror Lake Elementary in May. Photo by Shelley Pauls.

The Mirror Lake Elementary Bike Safety event was made possible by many different community partners coming together, including the Federal Way Police Department’s Bike Unit. Photo by Shelley Pauls.