Bangor Daily News Community

Hampden Recreation Department and SAD 22 work together to offer the WALKING SCHOOL BUS

By: Hampden Recreation

7:45 a.m. The weather was cool, crisp and sunny.  It was the perfect fall morning to walk to
school.

Heavy traffic, living far from school, working parents and
lack of sidewalk space are often reasons children do not hit the pavement by
foot or bicycle. However, on October 18, 2007, eighty children with the support
of parent volunteers, Hampden Recreation Department staff and SAD 22 employees,
walked the 1-mile trek from Maine Savings Credit Union in Hampden to the SAD 22 McGraw
and Weatherbee Elementary Schools. 

On a typical morning, these students are either bused or
dropped off at school by car.  The
walking school bus was created so that children have the opportunity to walk,
with supervision, from a designated meeting place. Hampden Recreation and SAD
22 use the walking school bus as a way to support physical activity for grades
K-5 and give kids the chance to enjoy the fresh air, walking with friends, to
their school before they start their day. Principal Regan Nickels of the
Weatherbee Elementary School walked with her students this year while Principal
Sally Leclair of McGraw Elementary School, has in the past, walked with her
students.

This event has been successful with the enthusiasm of the
students and parents in the Town of Hampden, and the collaborative planning of
the Hampden Recreation Director, Kurt Mathies, with SAD 22 School Health
Coordinator, Courtney Rice and the SAD 22 School Health Leadership Team.