Newport, RI is a great place to be in August – we were lucky enough to have a Bike-A-Thon® charity workshop scheduled there, with AmWINS Group Benefits.

AmWINS Group Benefits Shows Great Energy for Team Building

In fact, what a beautiful day for the AmWINS Group Benefits team to gather on the patio overlooking the marina in Newport Rhode Island’s Newport Harbor Hotel & Marina.

The perfect late summer’s day seems to have given this team of 65 people a huge boost of energy. From the start, they were fully engaged and ready to have a great time. That’s good, because we brought plenty of challenge to the table for them to sink their teeth into!

Team Building Activities

We began with a fun round of ice breakers to really solidify the group feeling and build a little trust before we dug into the team building exercises that would lead to the bicycle building activity. The icebreakers were among our favorites:

Say What I Say
Air Counting
Circuit Ball

Then we did Commercials, a highly engaging and interactive group activity that brings out the best collaboration and communication skills in everyone. The group produced 12 commercials for products they invented and learned a LOT about one another as they pitched their products. Some things that will not soon be forgotten!

Finally, before the building of the bicycles, we had a Personal Scavenger Hunt with customized questions for the AmWINS group.

Building the Bicycles: Without Blindfolds!

As you may know, Magnovo’s bicycle workshop is a little different from the rest. Since we’re all about teamwork, we build that element into everything we do. Therefore, when it comes time to build the bicycles for the kids, we don’t just haul out the parts and tools and let everyone have a go at it.

Instead, teams must compete for those parts and tools, in a way that continues to build on teamwork skills. Everyone stepped up their game as teams competed for bike parts. And wow were they competitive.

Charity: Sandpipers Early Learning Center

Bicycles were for the Sandpipers Early Learning Center. A representative arrived towards the end of the workshop, with kids. She gave a presentation about her organization and stayed to talk with the AmWINS group.

Everyone from AmWINS was moved by the excitement of the children and the realization that a shortime of fun for them means much more than that. They gave hope and happiness to a group of deserving kids.