In late April, Madison Elementary in Blaine hosted a biking to school safely program.
“The timing of this event is just wonderful,” said Anoka-Hennepin Schools transportation safety coordinator Jeff Mueller. “Everybody’s anxious to get out on their bicycles. Bicycles that they might of just received. Hit the trails, hit the sidewalks, hit the roads.”
It was all hands on deck on this sun-drenched day. The Blaine police department showed up.
“We want kids to be aware of their surroundings,” said Blaine Police Officer Carly Ahlers. “Because unfortunately people that are driving cars aren’t always aware of little kids on bikes.”
The SBM Fire Department also made an appearance at Madison.
“We’re finally getting into that warm weather, the kids are getting out,” said SBM’s Jeff Lundquist. “It’s great to see all these kids coming now with some helmets on. “We’re just going to make sure that they fit properly and that every kid here gets a nice helmet.”
“This is just absolutely wonderful that so many kids are coming in right now,” said Jessie Coon, a Madison Para and Traffic Control Officer. “They’re getting fitted for helmets and getting their bikes checked out and they have bike bells.”
Jessie’s vision
The turnout was impressive.
“I think it was like 51 kids,” Coon said.
Much of the credit goes to Coon.
“It all came together,” Coon said.
Coon got the ball rolling by getting a $1700 grant through the Anoka-Hennepin educational foundation.
“I had applied for a grant for 100 bike helmets and 100 bike bells for our students at Madison,” Coon said. “I wanted to put on a biking program. I just felt there was a need for it. I emailed Blaine police. They said that they would be willing to come out to show kids bike safety. I emailed the Blaine fire department and they said that they would come out.”
Coon’s motivation was fostered by a tragic situation – her best friend was in a horrific bicycle accident and was saved by wearing a helmet.
“There’s a lot of our students they bike to and from school and they don’t have bike helmets,” Coon said. “Some of them can’t afford them either. They don’t have bike bells.”
Riding rules
Madison’s riding rules focus on safety.
“I know that my school now has a policy that if you’re not wearing your helmet on school grounds you can’t ride your bike,” said Madison student Anna Kline. “The teachers will stop you to make sure you’re safe on their school grounds.”
Kline was ecstatic to be part of the bicycle safety day.
“I think it’s really important to have events like these teaching about our safety because I’m one of the patrols here at Madison,” Kline said. “It always makes me happy to see kids ride their bikes and riding their bikes safely.”
“When it comes to school zones and we see those flashing lights, reduce speeds,” Mueller said. “Please as motorists out there let’s work together.”
The youngsters went through various safety drills and were able to get their bikes looked at by fire and police personnel.
“We’ve got some stop signs for the kids to practice on,” Ahlers said. “Making sure that they’re looking both ways before crossing the road and paying attention to their surroundings and being able to maneuver their bike safely.”
There are many benefits to biking and the payoff can be huge.
“It’s so important for students with exercise, their concentration, their focus, their retention information,” Coon said. “The studies have shown just biking to school can help improve your test scores.”
Getting valuable tips and having fun at the same time was a winning combination at Madison.
“I just feel so blessed that all of this happened,” Coon said.
The day was clearly a success.
