Rob Jarosz stops traffic on the first day of school at Cornelius Elementary (Jonathan Cox/CorneliusNews.net).
The community’s prayers are with Robert Jarosz, the crossing guard who was seriously injured when he was struck by a car in front of Cornelius Elementary School Thursday, just before school dismissal. Jarosz, 82, has worked part-time as a crossing guard for four years, and is just two months from retirement.
Jarosz was standing in the middle of the crosswalk just before school dismissal at 3:45pm, wearing his bright green reflective vest and holding a stop sign, when a 78-year-old man driving east at 20 mph failed to reduce speed and hit him. Police said it did not appear that the driver saw Jarosz or even knew that he had hit him. Witnesses had to stop the man’s car.
He was cited for failure to reduce speed and failure to yield to a pedestrian in the crosswalk.
Jarosz was transported by MEDIC to Carolinas Medical Center Main in Charlotte, and is still in the hospital under observation, police said.
The crossing is hard to miss, with flashing lights, a raised crosswalk, and multiple school zone signs. But Gene Ervin, who works as a crossing guard at Davidson Elementary School on South Street and filled in for Jarosz at Cornelius Elementary last spring, said reckless driving on East Catawba Avenue is all too common.
“I had a couple close calls,” he said. “People came through there talking on the telephone, texting, and not paying any attention whatsoever to the speed limit or the fact that it was a school zone.” Ervin said that, despite heavy through traffic on South Street near Davidson Elementary, drivers are more attentive and stop more regularly. “I’ve felt pretty safe there,” he said, “but now I’ll be more vigilant.”
In an email to parents Thursday night, Cornelius Elementary School principal Jessica Holbrook said the school will continue to make security its first priority. “We will work with the Town of Cornelius to ensure our crosswalk is safe for students and community members,” she said.
The white-bearded Jarosz didn’t just guide students across the crosswalk – he won their hearts too. When children arrived in the morning and left after the bell rang at 3:45pm, he was there to stop traffic and guide them across the street. Many of the students knew him simply as Mr. RJ, and their parents posted concerned comments on Facebook after news of the accident was released yesterday.
“He does such a great job protecting our kids everyday!” said Katie Marie in a comment on a Facebook post on the Cornelius police department’s page.
Jarosz was planning to retire at the end of the school year, and the police department had already posted a job listing on the town website seeking a replacement.
Cornelius police chief Bence Hoyle said that Jarosz’s job could sometimes be a thankless one. “Crossing guards in general are taken for granted and they are there because of the inherent risk in crossings at our schools,” he said.
“Mr. Jarosz is a hero for the hundreds of children he has protected before this accident and remains so in his recovery. We are extremely proud of him and praying for his recovery and a healthy future retirement.”
