October 31st, 2014

Pumpkin Patrol is back again – and the WRDSB is celebrating 20 years of patrolling dedication.

In honour of the anniversary, WRDSB director of education John Bryant and Waterloo Regional Police Service (WRPS) school resource officer Mike Allard took a moment to recognize and award WRDSB plumber Bob Belec and WRDSB tradesperson Doug Ferguson for their 20 years of volunteer commitment to the Pumpkin Patrol program.

“It hurts when you see broken windows. That’s our tax payer’s money, and I am a tax payer and I hate seeing busted windows and vandalism, so right away getting involved was a no brainer,” says Belec of why he started helping out.

Both Belec and Ferguson have committed themselves every night and every year, never missing a shift.

Volunteers start their supervision at dusk and stay out as late as 1 or 2am, and as an added safety precaution, everyone must check-in and check-out of each shift. This year, the volunteers will be patrolling Thursday October 30, Friday October 31, and Saturday November 1, in partnership with the WRPS. There are over 18 clearly marked Pumpkin Patrol vehicles, each with a minimum of two volunteers for security and witnessing measures.

In addition to making sure WRDSB property is protected and clean, volunteers are watchful for any problems that may occur while children are out “trick-or-treating”. They can be a safe haven for help if needed.

Many thanks go out to all of our volunteers who offer their evenings to making our community a safer place to live and work.

About Pumpkin Patrol

The program started in 1994 by the Facility Department staff who volunteered their personal time, after work hours, to patrol WRDSB schools and facilities in hopes of reducing vandalism and ensure community safety.

As vandalism was the predominant cause of damage of Board property, facility staff wanted to assist the Board by patrolling school sites ensuring the safety of children and students in the community. When the program first launched, volunteers would encounter many broken windows, egging, and graffiti causing huge cleanup costs and disruption of the morning start up for schools.

Over the years, WRDSB has seen a dramatic decline in the incidents over the Halloween weekend, and in 2013, there was no damage or cleanup during the four nights of Pumpkin Patrol. Patrolling WRDSB properties during the Halloween week has proven to be a successful deterrent for unwanted activity. It has also increased safety to children and parents who may be out on a fun filled evening.

 

 

 

 

 

Categories: Board · Community · Feature Tags: community safety · Halloween · Pumpkin Patrol · volunteers · Waterloo Regional Police Service