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A donation from Kia supplier Powertech is going to make sure a number of West Point Children get new bicycles this Christmas.

Powertech chief operations officer Darren Lucas and human resource manager Jason Ransbottom presented checks of $5,000 each to West Point’s police and fire departments Wednesday morning.

Police Chief Jeffrey Cato said he’d use the money to buy at least 20 new bicycles for local needy children. The department had been collecting used bikes for the third year in a row for local youngsters.

Fire Chief Milton Smith said he wasn’t sure how his department would use the money, but said it would go to a local charity.

Lucas said the company, next to the Kia Motors manufacturing building off Interstate 85, appreciates support it has received from the local police and fire departments, which helped spur the donation.

“I respect the partnership we have,” Lucas said.

Powertech itself has worked with the city to “adopt” eight local families for Christmas, providing gifts and food. It also is making a donation to the West Point Food Closet.

“This will go a long way” to the effort to buy bicycles, Cato said. He also said he’d received $250 from the Walmart Distribution Center in LaGrange to buy helmets to go along with the bicycles.

The bicycles and helmets will be distributed Friday.

Kia and its suppliers have turned into regular Santas in the last month. Kia has donated to the city’s bus shelter construction program and also to New Horizon Theater, as well as making a donation to the Troup County Schools’ STEM program.