Last week, I had the joy of participating in a fun event at Sacramento Elementary, one of 19 schools participating in Portland’s Safer Routes to School program. The event celebrated Earth Day with a ‘walk and bike to school day’ and an official launch of their new garden, Cougar Community Garden. Earlier in the month, I visited most of the classrooms in the school to start a poster project with themes of healthy kids and a healthy Earth. During my visits, we discussed the connection between walking, biking, health and the environment. The kids made the connection easily- even the very young ones. We talked about air pollution and kids’ health; when I asked if they knew someone with asthma, over half of the kids in every class quickly raised their hands. Students are also encouraged to get physical through a program called Shape Up Across Oregon. Every time kids take part in in a physical activity (gym, recess, or a walked/biked trip to school), they get to mark a square on their virtual journey across the state.
On the morning of the event, there were four meeting locations in the neighborhood where adults met kids to walk or bike to school in groups. Commissioner Sam Adams walked with one group from the old Woodland Park Hospital, located on the busy street of NE 102nd. In total, over 260 kids walked or biked to school that day- approximately 60% of the student body. Kids, parents and staff socialized among full-blooming tulips, admiring students’ artwork and poetry in the garden. Sam Adams passed out stickers to kids, and students located their homes on a big map of the school neighborhood. Auto traffic through the parking lot was minimal.
The event brought the community together in a way that walking and biking does so well. A buzz of conversation bubbled through the airwaves, and smiles flashed on the faces of young and old.
