There have been many things lately being said about the traffic and safety of our children in Newmarket and at Clearmeadow Public School. For those who do not know, I have four children who attend Clearmeadow Public School. I have been a part of the school council for many years now and have an interest (as we all do) to ensure our children have a safe and happy school environment.
Our Clearmeadow community is very lucky to have a fabulous crossing guard named Harvey Williams, who has been a part of the Clearmeadow family for many years. Harvey over the years has been instrumental in advocating for the safety of our children on the roadways and making sure that people obey the rules of the road. He has the heart of gold and is a grandfather figure to many of those children he has helped be safe from wee little things to finishing public school with him.
I was very lucky to have the opportunity to research and write an article about Harvey last year, which subsequently was published in Snapd Newmarket in June of 2014. Harvey was awarded also by the Town of Newmarket with a Volunteer Citizen Award for over 25 years of service in 2014.
https://www.darlenemorrison.com/harvey-williams-great-crossing-guard/
Just recently, Harvey organized a Safety campaign with the York Regional Police. It was called Operation ABC and took place on September 4, 2014. The focus of this year’s campaign was to ensure drivers respect crossing guards. Crossing guards help children cross the road safely by controlling traffic around schools. When a crossing guard holds up a stop sign, every driver must come to a complete stop before the cross walk and remain stopped until everyone, including the crossing guard have cleared the road. Failure to do so may result in serious injury or death to children or the crossing guard. It may also result in a fine of $180 and three demerit points.
“We are here today, thanks to Harvey”, York Regional Police Sgt Jason Mcilveen said.
I have seen this safety blitz being discounted on social media by few. This topic has become an issue for the upcoming election which is a great thing however , I just want to make sure that people can see beyond what you read and realize that Harvey has done a great deal of work in these areas, to improve safety in our communities. Harvey is a “Safety Champion”. I agree that we do need a review of traffic safety and want to applaud Harvey Williams for everything he has done over the years, to make this happen.
I am very proud to have my children attend Clearmeadow Public School and would like to thank Harvey again for his many years of dedication to our neighbourhood and children.
Harvey is amazing and so is my Clearmeadow Community.
