Shovels in Hand, Springs Women Clear School Sidewalks

Never underestimate the power of three women — and three plastic snow shovels.

During pickup at Springs School on Friday afternoon, Jennifer Haagen saw students walking home in the street, forced to wade through foot-high water at the corner of Gardiner Avenue and Springs-Fireplace Road.

And while driving home on Sunday night, she noticed that the sidewalks in front of Springs School still remained densely packed with snow.

Though two of her own children, ages 10 and 11, are eligible for bus transportation since they live more than a mile from Springs School, as a Springs alumna and former walker herself, she saw it as her duty to ensure a clear passageway for other children.

On Sunday evening, after posting on Facebook, Ms. Haagen, Linda Kernell, and Maria Reininger, all Springs parents, agreed to meet in the morning. Ms. Haagen and Ms. Kernell met at 8 a.m. Monday morning, shovels in hand, to begin clearing the sidewalks. Ms. Reininger joined Ms. Haagen in the afternoon.

Before stopping work for the day, the women cleared a wide swath of School Street — nearly making it to the intersection of Springs-Fireplace Road before it was time to pick up their children from school.

Last week's blizzard immobilized the South Fork, ultimately dumping two feet of snow. Local schools had three snow days and sandwiched by two more of weather-related delays and cancellations. A new round of early closings and delayed starts began on Monday.

"This morning, it's frozen solid," Ms. Haagen said Tuesday, when schools again saw two-hour delays because of freezing temperatures and slippery roads. "But maybe if it thaws out a little bit, we'll go back and make more progress."

Though more than a little sore, she refused to point any fingers.

"Everyone was working their tails off around the clock and their equipment wasn't working. This is not normal snowfall," said Ms. Haagen. "We did what we could. I want to be part of the solution and look out for our neighbors. Let's all take responsibility."

Stephen Lynch, the town highway superintendent, confirmed Monday that the sidewalks near Springs School weren't cleared because the Highway Department's machines couldn't handle snow of such depth.

Mr. Lynch explained that the town's current machine can clear between 18 inches and 24 inches of snowfall. "We're never had that much snow before," he said, adding that when workers tried using the machine, they "made it about 30 feet — and got stuck."

"The town did the best they could," said Elizabeth Mendelman, the Springs School Board president. "The piece of equipment that does the sidewalks wasn't operational."

She applauded the group of parents who shoveled, adding that yesterday's mix of ice and freezing temperatures made for "back-breaking work."

Going forward, she is hopeful that plans are put in place for the safe passage of children to school and back, no matter the weather forecast. At Springs School, about 150 children are not eligible for bus transportation because they live a mile or less from school grounds.

"Looking ahead, I hope we can get the equipment back up and running," said Ms. Mendelman. "We have to think about the safety of our kids. The sidewalks have to be cleared."

With reporting by Taylor K. Vecsey