Somewhere in the city, paralleling the Lake Bottom Canal from Lions Park to Freedom Academy, is a matrix of well maintained interlocking sidewalks used daily by happy, healthy children. Jessica Dillman has been walking her two daughters, ten year old twins, to Freedom Prep Academy, a tuition-free K-12 public charter school in the Rivergrove neighborhood, since they were in kindergarten. The daughters are now finishing up fifth grade. Along with her on her twice daily visits to the school Jessica takes her five year old son, who once rode in a stroller but now rides his bike or walks, and her dog Atlas.
From Jessica’s home to the school it’s a half mile distance, altogether a one mile walk for her daughters each day and a two mile walk for Jessica, her son, and Atlas. One daughter has tutoring on Tuesdays, creating an extra trip on that day. Using the sidewalks their walking experience is pleasant and friendly; sometimes “people not from our neighborhood are driving too fast,” but normally people are conscientious with the speed limits. “We have a friendly neighborhood,” she says and adds that she waves to people more during that short walk than to others all day long. Jessica does have a bike, but she prefers to walk. One of her daughters has a scooter and a bike but also prefers to walk with Atlas, so the dog always goes along and gets in his much needed outing as well.
“You’re getting exercise and extra time with kids,” Jessica tells me, “we talk about the trees and how everything’s changing through the seasons.” Getting to know her neighbors is another great advantage over driving. She has met neighbors that she would have never met, if she had been driving these same streets. “Fresh air and feeling the seasons” are ever present along the way as she and the children pass by the gardens of neighbors and chat about the different types of vegetables growing in these gardens, and they’re always observing the trees changing colors. “Take a breath and enjoy just one happy moment in your surroundings, take a deep breath and enjoy your surroundings, that will make your day better,” I hear Jessica smiling.
In the winter the girls wear snow boots, their mother gives each of them a bag to put their boots in during classes; umbrellas and jackets are accompaniments too. “They love it, some of our best times,” Jessica expresses about the girls' walking experience, it “gives us a chance to talk about how their day went, how my day went.” And the City has also done a good job of rounding off the edges of up-lifted sidewalks, making their walk safer and easier, she adds. I concluded our interview just in time, a warm informative conversation, as it was time for Jessica to leave to pick up her two daughters from school. Looking out the window I noticed it was still raining.
