Coconut Grove boy, 10, comes up with safe way to cross streets
MIAMI - One Coconut Grove student is making it his mission to help people in his community cross the road safely.
This new initiative was started by a 10-year-old boy looking to make crossing the street safer for him and his friends.
"I saw how it was bad here so I thought of the idea," said Lucas Kwiatkowski.
Kwiatkowski goes to St. Stephen's Episcopal Day School in Coconut Grove. He noticed dangerous drivers putting pedestrians' lives at risk.
"If you're going to go you might have to wait forever. Or you might get hit because the cars, sometimes they're on their phones. Or they're just not paying attention," said Kwiatkowski.
That's when an idea popped into his head, See Me Flags!
Bright neon flags are placed at each side of the crosswalk, you cross the street with a flag in hand and drop it off on the other side.
"Flags are neon orange with a reflective strip across it. So, it's like very easy to see. My dad was driving over there and he could see the bucket," said Kwiatkowski.
He launched his new neighborhood tool, just one day before the start of school.
Lucas has secured 4 locations for the flags with the help of local leaders.
"Just to see a kid take some initiative and really want to help his community and not be afraid to reach out to adults, policymakers and government officials. I see it as a testament to this young man. I hope other kids follow suit," said Mark Burns, Executive Director of Coconut Grove Business Improvement District.
Lucas says his goal is to have these see-me flags no only all over Coconut Grove, but the entire county.
