School Safety Patrol: To Serve and Protect

Making good grades in the early years (1st to 5th grades) at Stockton made a student eligible for school service that sometimes got us out of class time. In the 5th grade I was allowed to miss class to work in the main school library and in 6th grade, a fellow student and I were allowed to miss class to actually run (with no direct adult supervision) the small library in Stockton School West.

Another service job starting around 5th grade was school safety patrol/crossing guard/marshall which permitted us to get to school a little late and to leave early and we got to wear an official-looking sash.  Each of us was usually assigned a relatively low-traffic street corner near our home to help get the younger kids across the street safely (policemen like Officer Marty or adult crossing guards handled busier intersections like Grove at William St and 19th at William St).  Barbara Mondino was a crossing guard at the corner of New St and Grove St., Seth McQuillan had the corner of William St and Vernon Terrace and a couple of years later I had William and Stockton Place. Seth did well and received a certificate. I could get no cooperation from any but the youngest kids, quickly realized I had no future as an authority figure, sash or no sash, resigned in disgrace, and got no certificate. (certificate courtesy of Seth McQuillan)