Up Close: Debra Keirce

By Leah Carliner

Tuesday, September 2, 2008

Not every mother can safeguard her child from the whims of irresponsible drivers, but Debra Keirce can. The mother of three Loudoun County public school students is a crossing guard for Mill Run Elementary School, which gives Keirce a bird’s-eye-view of bad pedestrian habits from her crosswalk at Ridgeway Drive.

From her perch, where she spends one hour in the morning before school and one hour in the afternoon after school, she also sees her fair share of irresponsible driver practices. This year is Keirce’s second as a school crossing guard.

Keirce recently spoke with Loudounextra.com about the common mistakes she sees from parents and children on foot and behind the wheel.

Q: What is the most dangerous time of day for student pedestrians?

A: It depends on what’s going on... If you have [a lot of] traffic parked, not only is it obstructing your vision, but also pedestrians. I don’t think that you can say it’s more dangerous in the afternoon [than in the morning] or vice versa.

Q: What are common mistakes you see student pedestrians make?

A: The students - and you know, a lot of times it’s the parents, too - they are used to crossing at the crosswalk [on their own]. They are used to crossing there because it’s their neighborhood, and they don’t give it a second thought . . . . A lot of times parents will encourage their kids, “Come on,” but you have to teach them, “No, you can’t go until I say so.”

Q: What are some common mistakes you see drivers make?

A: Probably the biggest one is people assume that we know they are going to stop . . . . Another thing people will tend to do sometimes is they will park to pick up their kids . . . and that doesn’t leave enough room for buses and larger vehicles. It gets dangerous to do that, too, because then I don’t have a line of sight.

Q: What is it important for parents to tell their children about pedestrian safety around a school zone?

A: Just to listen to the crossing guard, and don’t go until they tell you to. They’ll tend to want to go right when you blow that whistle . . . , [but] you may be blowing that whistle to try and get a car to stop.

Q: As a mother, what scares you most about your children being at a crosswalk?

A: I wouldn’t say it’s too scary. It’s just a matter of, again, if you’ve got someone who’s not attentive behind the wheel.

Tagged: Loudoun County Public Schools, schools, Up Close

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