This Whiz Kid Goes Straight to the Top

When you were a kid and you saw a problem, who did you go to?  Your parents? Your teachers? Whiz Kid Jaeda Hamel went straight to the top: Mayor McGlynn and her principal.

Jaeda is a 9 year-old student at the Roberts Elementary School, where her favorite subjects are computers and gym.  She likes hiking, riding her bike and scooter, and playing on her DS.  And a year ago, she started getting her friends together to pick up trash in her neighborhood. 

On May 14 Jaeda and her family were at the Wright's Pond GreenUp CleanUp.  "I picked up sticks, pulled weeds, and also played with my friends.  The mayor was there too, and I asked him if I could do a neighborhood clean-up myself," reports Jaeda.  "He said, Absolutely!" Mayor McGlynn's response was incredible: if Jaeda needed trash pick-up or paint for her project, she just needed to let him know.

Mayor McGlynn's response really fired her up. Another project took shape. Jaeda lives near the Roberts School, and she wants to tackle that too.  On May 18 she wrote to Principal Kirk Johnson to propose a clean-up on Saturday, June 18 from 1:30-3:30. She assured him that Grace Church and the City of Medford would provide the equipment, bags for trash and recyclables, and trash pick-up.  She also added that "for a successful clean-up we would like to: 1) gain your insight and perspective on what is most needed, and 2) use the school's established channels of communication to advertise the event."

 The most important aspect of Jaeda's project is "that I get to do it, because I really, really, really like cleaning and making our community healthy.  I wish that people would stop littering."

While Jaeda has Mr. Johnson's verbal approval, his promised written response hasn't materialized.  Many an adult has gone head-to-head with the frustrating world of bureaucracy, only to be thwarted.  Jaeda's keeping at it, though.  She knows that even when you go straight to the top, you still need to have persistance.