Crossing Guards Get Their Due

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by Melissa Bailey | Mar 31, 2006 2:33 pm

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Posted to: Schools

They get heckled by speed demons. They get up at 6 a.m. to stand in the ice and snow. They haven’t had a pay raise in five years. But the city’s crossing guards like Cea-Cea Gilchrist (pictured with some of her adoring charges) — who were honored in a ceremony at the Hall of Records Friday — still go out every day and protect schoolkids from getting crushed.

“I almost got hit once but I always put myself before the children,” Gilchrist said. “I have a loud, strong voice, so I always scream, ‘Stop!’”

A host of public officials passed out certificates at Friday’s ceremony to the city’s 62 crossing guards, with special props to the handful with perfect attendance records. These first-grade students (pictured above) from Cold Spring School showed up to say “thanks” to Gilchrist, their beloved crossing guard.

“I love the people at Cold Spring. The parents are beautiful, the children are beautiful,” said Gilchrist, who guards the corner by the private Chapel Street school.

The job isn’t always easy. “One time there was a speed chase and we was in the middle of the intersection,” she recalled. A young man had stolen a truckload of lawnmowers. A trail of cop cars followed in hot pursuit. “I was so afraid for the kids. Thank god no one got hurt.”

Catherine McKnight (pictured, right) got hit by a pickup truck on the job last year. “I still feel the pain in my hip, but it’s OK —‚ the kid didn’t get hit.” She keeps a watchful eye on four children who walk to the Vincent Mauro School on Orchard Street. The job has its challenges. “The people —‚Äù they don’t want to stop for you. You get cussed out, and I’m a Christian, I don’t like that stuff.” But she still loves “keeping the little ones safe. It’s rewarding to see their smiling faces every day.”

The guards’ longest-standing member, Rae Andrews, has worked in front of the St. Francis School for over 30 years, ever since her child was in first grade.

“Ferry Street, it’s like a race track. Drivers don’t have respect for the kids,” Andrews said. She said the guards haven’t gotten a raise in five years. “I think the girls deserve it —‚Äù they’re working hard,” she said. For the record, so are the men —‚Äù at least one male crossing guard was commended for perfect attendance.

Alderman Yusuf Shaw, a former volunteer crossing guard himself, empathized with the guards’ low pay. “I cannot commit to a raise,” he said. “But I’m committed to asking for more.”

Shaw joined a host of city leaders commending the guards’ work. “We appreciate it and we don’t often let you know it,” said Paul Wessel, the city traffic director. Police Chief Cisco Ortiz chimed in: “Wherever you are, there aren’t any problems or accidents. God bless you for what you do —‚Äù you’re making a difference, making New Haven better.”

Kids were thankful too: They sent in piles of fan mail to their favorite guards. Linda Greene (pictured), who’s worked for 10 years outside the St. Brennan School, got a tableful of handmade cards. She hasn’t missed a day of work in 10 years. “I just do it: cold, winter, I’m there.”

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