Crossing Guards End Snow-Filled Week With Free McDonald’s Coffee

BALDWIN, NY. — A cadre of Nassau County crossing guards got a complimentary cup of Joe this week thanks to a Long Island-wide initiative from McDonald’s titled, “Crossing Guard Appreciation Week.” On Friday afternoon, a few of the guards got together at a Baldwin location to enjoy the coffee on the house.

The crossing guards who dropped in Friday work at or around Nassau County schools, most of which were closed Monday and Tuesday due to the blizzard. For Baldwin crossing guard Tony Spoto, that return to work came with a troubling piece of news: Crosswalks in front of his corner of Baldwin hadn’t been shoveled.

Tony tried to call local government officials, but he said he got passed around from office to office, eventually being told that it was the responsibility of whoever owned the building to clean off the sidewalk. When he heard that news, the 70-year-old said he decided to pick up a shovel himself.

"I said, this is unsafe for pedestrians," Spoto told Patch. "I've got kids walking over these snow piles, senior citizens, too, who I had to hold their hands and walk them through the crosswalk."

Spoto's exploits gained him some notoriety in local Facebook groups, where a photo of him shoveling a path to the street was posted. In the comments under the photo, Spoto was hailed as a "nice man," "the best," and "a wonderful person."

For other crossing guards in the Baldwin McDonald's, the snow pileup was a bit less severe. School districts, they said, had taken a lesson from January's storm.

“My school actually started a day ahead, they learned from the last snow storm when things were a lot more chaotic,” Uniondale crossing guard Felicia Ford told Patch. “It was hectic, but it was a little bit more organized at my school. I had to just avoid slipping and sliding.”

“You’ve actually got to walk the kids over,” Baldwin-based crossing guard Amelia Susco said. “You’ve actually got to grab them [by the hand] and walk them.”

“This is a lot of parents’ first snow storms, I think” Ford said. “Within ten years, we have a lot of young parents and young students, and this was their first snow storm. They kind of relied on me and the staff to bring students in.”

“I’m on Grand Avenue, so the school is four, five blocks away. It’s hectic,” Spoto said. “The kids are the best part [of the job].”

Each of the crossing guards said they’d had parents bring them coffees, waters, and other tokens of appreciation throughout their years. In some cases, cars even pull over, roll the window down and give the crossing guards a “we really appreciate what you’re doing” or a thumbs-up.

“It keeps you going,” Spoto said.

As far as the free cup of coffee, Spoto noted that it was a nice accolade.

“I appreciate it, it’ll definitely come in handy one day,” Ford said. “We appreciate it.”

McDonald’s Baldwin franchise owner Maria Kaufman — a Huntington resident and mother of two — was also thankful for the crossing guards, noting that they were playing a vital in protecting the most precious cargo of all.

“They were wonderful, they were very appreciative,” Kaufman said. “They said that what they’re looking for every day [is] to have the children and the parents feel grateful for their work…They feel very happy, and we honor them because they keep us and our children happy and safe.”