When 68-year-old Patty Polley picked up a school crossing guard gig a few years ago, she considered it as a […]
When 68-year-old Patty Polley picked up a school crossing guard gig a few years ago, she considered it as a way to make some extra money.
But after she started helping grade-schoolers cross the busy road in front of Dale R. Fair Babson Park Elementary, she fell in love with them.
“I fell in love with all my little human beings,” says Patty. “It’s not even a job. It’s somewhere I love to go. I actually miss them in the summer.”
When the temperatures dropped, she noticed some of the kids were not dressed for the chill, so she went home and knitted many of them mittens.
Families were so moved by the gesture they reached out to Patty’s bosses at the Polk County Sheriff’s Office. They in turn praised her all over social media. Townspeople gave her presents and she became popular in her locality.
“Thank you to all of you, and to Babson Park Elementary School, who sent us private messages and shared FB posts about our wonderful School Crossing Guard Patty Polley,” the Polk County Sheriff’s Office wrote on Facebook. “The kids and faculty know her as ‘Ms. Patty’ and the attached post speaks for itself.”