Crossing With Ms. Pat

For four decades, Pat Daniels has been a steady presence at East Lansing’s crosswalks, ensuring that students make it to and from school safely. Since 1985, she has greeted children each morning and afternoon, often becoming the first face they see as the school day begins—or the first person they confide in once it ends.

“Sometimes, we are the first person they see,” Daniels said. “And maybe the first one to see them after school, too. With latchkey children, they need someone to talk to, to tell if they’ve had a bad day or if they need to talk.”

Daniels moved to East Lansing from Saginaw in 1976 with her husband, where they raised three daughters. When she first started as a crossing guard, the shifts were longer—90 minutes each in the morning, at lunch and in the afternoon. Today, her workday consists of an hour in the morning and another in the afternoon.

Her daughters were young when she began. The income she earned from the job—crossing guards in East Lansing are employed by Parking and Code Enforcement—helped pay their tuition at St. Thomas Aquinas Parish School.

“I’ve heard other crossing guards who complain about the students,” she said. “Maybe I’m fortunate [but] I don’t have any problems with the children. They’ve always been very polite and wonderful.”

Over the years, Daniels has seen everything from routine mornings to remarkable moments. She recalled a solar eclipse that captivated students, each of them running up to ask if she had seen it. “Yes, wasn’t it amazing?” she answered each one.

Every day is different, she said. Sometimes she crosses only two children, other days as many as 20. 

“Every single child, no matter what, is important,” Daniels said. “They each deserve my full attention.”

Her dedication hasn’t gone unnoticed. When Daniels fractured her femur and missed three months of work, her absence upset some of the children. One student told her bluntly: “I am so upset with you because I missed you so much.” Daniels explained she couldn’t walk due to her injury. The child paused and replied, “Ok, but I didn’t like it.”

It’s not all cheerful exchanges, however. Daniels has also seen her share of dangerous drivers. 

“I had one probably a week ago,” she said. “Thank goodness the children were already crossed, but I hadn’t finished. I looked up and this truck is just barreling down on me. [The driver] looks up and [is] very startled to see me and stops.”

Daniels said some motorists assume their obligation ends once the children are across, ignoring the fact that the crossing guard still has to make it safely back. In earlier years, guards could report reckless drivers to police, who would issue tickets. Today, with fewer officers on staff, that accountability has disappeared. 

“Some crossing guards have even been hit,” Daniels said.

When asked  if drivers have improved during her 40 years on the job, Daniels didn’t hesitate to say things have gotten worse. She also worries about the future of the profession. 

“Just this year they were trying to hire more crossing guards [but] they couldn’t,” she said. “They couldn’t get anybody with the pay being low. That’s frightening because you don’t want children to be walking across with the traffic like that.”

Despite the challenges, Daniels has built countless warm connections, not just with children but also with Michigan State University students who have offered her coffee or hot chocolate on bitterly cold mornings.

“When I’m in the middle of winter, I always go, ‘this is going to be my last year,’” Daniels admitted. “But then you get to spring and the kids come back and they’re so excited to see you and happy that school has started.”

Outside of her job, Daniels is an avid cyclist and enjoys gardening with her husband. 

She still has a message for parents who bound into traffic with their child without waiting for her: slow down, listen to crossing guards and remember that safety comes first.

“I asked one parent what would happen when they’re not walking their child to school,” Daniels said. “I told them that they will copy their behavior and just walk out. They could get hit. So just try to be a little bit more patient.”

Her plea extends to drivers and cyclists, too. 

“Please stop at the stop sign,” she said. “We are trying to keep your children safe. It may take you 30 seconds longer to get to your destination. We don’t want anyone hurt. Please don’t yell at us.”