Kids 'Walk and Roll' to School
The Press Democrat: October 6th, 2010
From left, Abby Rutherford, Jacob, 10; Ryan; and Maverick, ride their bikes down the street to Marguerite Hahn Elementary, as they take part in the "Walk & Roll to School Day" on Wed, Oct 6, in Rohnert Park. (BETH SCHLANKER/The Press Democrat)
Kerry Benefield
Jennifer Kulpa usually rides her bike alongside her kids to Rohnert Park's Hahn Elementary School campus. On Wednesday she had lots of company.
Kulpa led a group of nine students who walked, rode bikes and scooters to the Hudis Street campus in celebration of International Walk and Roll to School Day.
“It's super, it's fun,” she said of seeing almost 200 students get to school some other way than as a solo rider in a parent's car.
Across Sonoma County, more than 70 schools participated in the annual event that typically has students greeted with juice, snacks, small trinkets and a chance to win raffle prizes. More than 3,200 schools across the country were expected to participate.
Locally organized by the Safe Routes to Schools program, along with Safe Kids Sonoma County, The Sonoma County Bicycle Coalition, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District and other groups, the event is meant to prompt kids and parents to try an alternate way to get to school in the hope that it sticks long term.
The focus of the event is multi-faceted: encourage exercise among students, reduce carbon emissions and alleviate traffic around school sites that typically jumps about 20 percent when school is in session.
At Binkley Elementary School in Santa Rosa, 240 students out of 375 participated, according to Principal Mike Herfurth. It was the first time the school hosted a Walk and Roll to School Day event.
In Sebastopol, Mayor Sarah Gurney greeted students at Pine Crest Elementary School where the bike racks were full by the time the bell rang, according to organizers.
At Sassarini Elementary School in Sonoma, 126 students walked to school and 34 rode bikes or scooters. At Jefferson School in Cloverdale, 125 out of about 450 students participated, according to the school.
At Hahn, the number of participants nearly doubled from last year thanks in part, said coordinator parent Dia Jenkins, from an infusion of Safe Routes to Schools funds that helped get the word out to students and parents.
“We had fliers all over school, we sent a flier home,” she said. “We had their (representative) come in and talk to our principal and get the word out through the PTA.”
The success has led Jenkins to consider pushing for a Walk and Roll to School Day once a month instead of once a year.
“In the past it has come along then gone away. We have never revisited it or encouraged further walking to school,” she said. “Stuff like this, it takes repetition, just to keep it in kids minds.”
Hahn second-grader Alejandro Cabrera said walking to school is old hat for him. He's been doing it since he started school. But on Wednesday he was excited to get some juice and a snack for his effort and to see a whole slew of his classmates walking and riding along with him.
“Me and my sister walk all by ourselves,” he said. “We aren't afraid or anything — she'll be 11 years old.”
