New Era named top safety patrol
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 30/05/2019 (2530 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
For the past two years, Grade 6 student Curtis Splett has been helping keep his classmates safe.
The student at École New Era School spends early mornings and afternoons, reflective vest on, volunteering as captain of their CAA School Safety Patrol program team.
“We do a lot of stuff,” Splett said on Wednesday morning. “Mostly we just go out on the streets and patrol, but sometimes if we do like really good then we’ll have like a party. It’s kind of just like this big friendly community that we all take part in.”
Their school was awarded first place for their program out of 17 schools in the division on Wednesday. Students let out a cheer inside the classroom Wednesday morning when they were presented with their trophy. Kids involved spend time helping make sure their classmates are getting on and off buses safely, as well as patrolling on the streets and sidewalks to stop students from entering the roadway when it’s not safe.
“Last year, I decided to do it and this year I decided to do it again because it was so fun,” he said. “I’ve learned lots of respect definitely, and I’ve learned that safety is very important.”
Schools were judged for the award by CAA Manitoba and the Brandon Police Service.
They were looking for how the student volunteers walked from school to the crosswalk, Brandon Police Service Const. Alice Potter said. Students had to walk properly with their orange flags rolled up, and when they were at their stations, they had to be constantly watching for traffic and students.
“When a student comes behind them they have to block the student behind them (from crossing) so that they don’t cross until the traffic is clear,” Potter said.
Potter herself spent time in the program 30 years ago, and she knows first-hand the value it can have, she said. It gives young students a good sense of responsibility.
“You can see that in the patrols that we were judging over the past few weeks.” They come out there with their flags rolled up and they stand there and protect everybody — you can tell those people it’s already building that leadership, that sense of community and that pride. I highly recommend for any of the kids who ever want to try school patrols to try it.”
The program has existed for 82 years in the province, developed to help keep kids safe in school zones. It helps to teach kids important road safety skills, said Teresa Di Felice, CAA assistant vice-president, government and community relations.
“How to be communicating with traffic, if you’re crossing the street keeping eye contact, but also communicating with each other.”
It also helps with leadership skills, she said, as a lot of former patrollers end up in careers such as policing.
» mverge@brandonsun.com
» Twitter: @Melverge5