They stand guard with their orange reflector vests on while holding their stop signs in hand.

Every school day these three crosswalk angels can be found at their designated posts guiding our children and grandchildren safely across the street to their destination.

They serve during all types of weather, battle the constant wind, and an occasional vehicle that isn’t paying attention. They stand tall above the children like guardians of previous treasures.

These three “angels” are Gordon Walker, Glen Walker, and Ken DeFreece.

Gordon Walker is the short timer in this rank of angels. He has been with the Kimball Public School District for 11 years.  Prior to this he subbed now and again for Glen Walker and Ken De Freece, after he retired from the City of Kimball. Gordon worked for 26 years at the Power Plant.

Gordon’s post is at the cross walk at Hwy. 30 and West Elementary on Howard Street. He stops traffic for a number of children who walk to the school from the north side of Hwy. 30.

Though he has a few close calls from traffic and youngsters that try to dart out, one particular close call stands out. One of the younger students was crossing with him, when a car was failing to slow down. The vehicle did finally come to a stop nearly missing both Walker and the student. The person called him later to apologize for not being alert.  We thank you Gordon!

Ken DeFreece  has been guarding our crosswalks for 15 years. Before donning the neon orange reflector vest he worked for the Kimball Auto Parts for 27 years. Now he stands guard at Chestnut and 4th Street.  De Freece has seen some near misses over the years. Two occasions stand out more than other in his memory. A old rough looking pickup failed to stop for him and a student. the truck kept going and passed between him and the corner. “No one was hit, but it was too close for comfort!” De Freece stated. the other time a car driven by a person from the 21 county would not stop, and when he finally got her to stop, she would not roll down her window so he could speak to her.

De Freece did have praises for most of the big rigs that go through town during his watch.

They will stop back a ways, and hold traffic until De Freece is safely back on the corner.  We thank you Ken!

Glen Walker is our third angel. Like De Freece, he has been guarding our crosswalks for 15 years. He is also Gordon Walker’s brother. He is the reason Gordon moved to Kimball. They grew up in the sandhills by Seneca. Glen  came to Kimball where he met his wife Marlene. He served two years in Korea for the Army.

He worked driving truck for the Co-Op for 18 years. then worked for the City of Kimball for 22 years. After his “retirement” he came to work for the Kimball Public School District, and on April 3rd, he celebrated his 83rd bithday.

Glen’s post is on Hwy. 30 and High School Street. At his post, there have been some close calls as well.  On one occasion, a man was barreling down and Glen shoved a boy out of the way. No one was hurt, and the man never stopped. We thank you Glen!

To date, these angels have guarded our children and our crosswalks with no injuries or fatalities. In interviewing these three angels, it was observed that some do not obey the speed signs, stop signs or the fact that children are present. I give a standing ovation to these three wonderful angels. THANK YOU!