
DATE: Thursday, May 15, 1997                TAG: 9705150458

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B1   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY MIKE KNEPLER, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: NORFOLK                           LENGTH:  101 lines

CONCERN FOR CHILDREN'S SAFETY PAIRS PUBLIC-HOUSING COMPLEX AND NORFOLK NEIGHBORHOOD

The chain-link fence between their neighborhoods did not matter - only the desire to keep children safe on the way to school.

That's why retirees Pearlie Mae Lewis of the Roberts Village public-housing community and Ilora Caffee of nearby Ballentine Place now find themselves volunteering together - and making a little history.

Wednesday marked the first time in Norfolk that a public-housing community and a traditional neighborhood have teamed up on a citizen patrol effort.

``I think it's breaking down barriers,'' said Doris Brown, president of the Ballentine Civic League and a patrol volunteer.

And by breaking down barriers through common projects, Brown said, residents will begin to dispel stereotypes of each other's neighborhoods, especially in public housing where tenants often feel stigmatized and left out of Norfolk's mainstream.

``I have the same worries that any other mother would have,'' said Yolanda Powell, 26, of Roberts Village, who has two boys and a girl. ``We all need to look out for each other's children.''

That's why Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority officials jumped at the opportunity to pair a public housing neighborhood with its nearby community.

``We have been trying to encourage partnerships between public housing communities and . . . other civic associations and with businesses,'' explained Herman Springs, the authority's security program manager.

The patrols also delighted Carl G. Meredith, president of the Norfolk Neighborhood Crime Prevention Coalition. He said the joint effort could inspire more civic partnerships between public-housing and traditional neighborhoods, with benefits spilling across larger areas of the city.

The patrols, which began at about 7:30 a.m. Wednesday, will watch over children as they walk to schools and bus stops in the mornings and return in the afternoons.

They were inspired by similar patrols that began in the Tidewater Gardens and Young Terrace public housing neighborhoods in March.

And not even a discouraging word from Tidewater Gardens could deter the new volunteers.

In Tidewater Gardens this week, someone slashed all four tires of a patrol volunteer's car. No one has been caught and no motive is known.

``That lets us know how critical this work is,'' volunteer Dorothy Winfield said when news of the tire slashing reached Ballentine Place, ``Good gracious! What is our world coming to?''

Pearl Walker of Tidewater Gardens said seeing the flattened tires on Tuesday morning angered her so much that she decided to join her neighborhood's patrol.

``When I saw it, I said, `Can I get a vest?' '' referring to the blaze-orange vests worn by volunteers.

Walker, 25, the mother of two, said she's come to appreciate the patrol. ``Before, there were a lot of strange people standing around and coming up to the kids and stuff. All those people are gone,'' she said.

Sabrina Jordan, 30, a Roberts Village mother, said she joined the patrol in her neighborhood because it will be good for children to be greeted every morning by friendly adults.

``Every parent can't be out here,'' said Lewis, 69, a retired nurse who has a 10-year-old great-grandson.``They're working. So I could be out here helping.''

Caffee, 66, a retired City Hall custodian, said she did not have time to walk her four children to the school bus stop when they were growing up. ``I had to be at work,'' she said. ``So I'm sure that some of the parents now would be glad to know that somebody is watching out for their kids.''

The idea for Ballentine Place to work with Roberts Village was sparked when the Rev. James Winfield of Ballentine Place followed news reports of the first patrols in Tidewater Gardens. He called Springs and the program began.

More than 20 volunteers from Ballentine Place and Roberts Village were trained together by Springs. They are issued blaze-orange vests, black caps and share cellular telephones.

The 360 Communications company donated 15 cell phones to Norfolk's public-housing patrols. ``President Clinton challenged the industry last year as he was making a bid for more people to be involved in community patrols,'' said Mary Ann Welch, media relations manager. ``He suggested that the cellular industry provide resources to these patrols to make them more effective.

``A lot of times the would-be perpetrators, just by seeing these phones in someone's hand, makes them think twice.''

But volunteers are told by Springs not to try to be heroes when serious problems arise. Patrols, he said, are there to guide the children and serve as deterrents. Real police work is left to the cops.

Besides, volunteers now seem to have found an additional role in reaching out to each other over neighborhood lines.

``You know, we must all live in this world together. Why divide yourselves?'' Dorothy Winfield said. ``Our goal is to watch out for the children, not just our children, but all children.'' MEMO: The next round of training for patrol volunteers will begin the

week of May 26. It's for Norfolk public-housing communities and adjacent

neighborhoods. For information, call Herman Springs at 623-1111, Ext.

330, or pager 475-0272. ILLUSTRATION: RICHARD L. DUNSTON/The Virginian-Pilot

Herman Springs, right, security program manager of the Norfolk

Redevelopment and Housing Authority, walks with, from left, Ilora

Caffee, Doris Brown, Etta Johnson and Dorothy Winfield along the

route they will patrol on Ballentine Boulevard in the mornings.

Color photo

Pearlie Mae Lewis