A local college student and Bellefontaine High School graduate made a big impact this summer on a program that provided her with a strong foundation regarding safety awareness as a youngster.
Jordan Butler attended Safety Town in Bellefontaine prior to attending elementary school, just like thousands of students had done since the program was established in 1962.
The weeklong program is sponsored by the Bellefontaine Exchange Club and carried out by the Bellefontaine Police Department and other local agencies.
Now about 15 years after she completed Safety Town classes, Butler once again spent time during her summer break among all the miniature buildings and streets that make up the fun-filled space for children to practice stopping at stop lights, learning how to cross the street and many other important traffic safety guidelines.
The University of Cincinnati student had a goal of completing a minimum of about 30 community service hours for consideration for a scholarship program, so she volunteered to give the Safety Town buildings a much-needed facelift, Exchange Club member Tim Notestine reported.
Butler grabbed her paintbrush and paint roller and got to work painting the 20 miniature buildings in a variety of bright colors to refresh the Safety Town facility, located behind the Mac-A-Cheek Learning Center, 1130 W. Sandusky Ave., Bellefontaine.
Now Butler is back at the University of Cincinnati, where she is a junior studying occupational therapy. But her kind actions will make a difference in improving the Safety Town experience for future pre-kindergarten students who will attend the program, along with their instructors, Notestine said.
Safety Town originally taught children about traffic safety so that they would be safe on their trips to and from school. Over the years, a number of other topics have been added so that children learn how to react when encountering other potentially dangerous or unsafe situations, Notestine noted.
The Bellefontaine Exchange Club is a local service club that has served the Bellefontaine area in various ways since 1946.
