A few weeks ago, my husband, Jeff, our neighbor, Margaret Welch, my granddaughter Nora, and I were walking to the new playground at Greg Freeman Park around 7:30 a.m., on a random Wednesday morning, when we heard a man shouting. We didn’t think much of it until we realized he was sitting just outside the playground and appeared quite agitated. As we made our hasty retreat, he began following us, yelling, swearing and threatening some unpleasant actions against us.
Margaret called the police to report the incident and about 10 to 15 minutes later, she and Jeff returned to meet with the officers, make a statement and ensure the man was safe, in custody and removed from the area.
The situation was resolved without incident and I immediately thought of my block captain, Katie Kurtz, and sent her a text to spread the word to our neighbors to avoid the playground for a few hours and to keep a wary eye out. I was ever so thankful to have Katie just a text away and wondered if all of our neighborhood blocks have a support system and, if so, perhaps we should let more folks know about our experience.
So, I sent an email to Victoria Headrick, our SD project manager, to warn her to be vigilant and asked if she could send me the most current block captain list. Linda Cross, a long time Skinker DeBaliviere resident, was also contacted for any lists she might have. Unfortunately, upon review of said lists, I discovered that our neighborhood now has very few block captains.
What’s a block captain? A block captain is a volunteer who acts as the primary liaison (i.e., email sender, emergency texter and occasional phone caller) between neighbors and the neighborhood council or possibly, broader city organizations. They might help organize or announce block parties, send reminders about street sweeping or relay information about street closures or emergencies to improve neighborhood safety.
“Back in the day,” (circa 1978), the city’s CDA (Community Development Administration) awarded Skinker DeBaliviere neighborhood grants, which were used to help support our neighborhood’s improvements and council office staffing. The neighborhood had a very active social life, hosting (adult) homecoming and prom dances, and melodrama plays with silent auctions. Fundraisers were held regularly and there was a lot of neighborhood camaraderie. The block captains held monthly meetings to discuss safety issues and neighborhood events, all for the purpose of keeping everyone informed. Sadly, as funding decreased, so did our block captain numbers.
Despite our current block captain deficit, the benefit and need is still present. A huge thanks to those folks already serving to keep neighbors informed, but wouldn’t it be great to replenish the block captain list!? Katie Kurtz has graciously volunteered to coordinate a block captain organizational meeting. If you are interested, please reach out to Katie at knkurtz@swbell.net.
Although we can’t “go back in the day,” we can still invest in our neighborhood in meaningful ways. The ability to reach out to one another is still just as important. We need community support more than ever and our neighborhood is a great community! Let’s make it even better!
