Lorain County Joint Vocational School students are working to build a new facility for the City of Oberlin’s Safety Town program, made to look like scaled-down versions of familiar buildings in downtown Oberlin. Safety Town, a national nonprofit organization that was founded in Mansfield, is administered through the Oberlin Police Department and provides a summer program educating rising kindergarteners on applicable safety knowledge.
A city of child-sized buildings has begun to rise behind Oberlin Elementary School, where Safety Town is held. Between these buildings, children learned how to safely ride bikes and cross the street this summer. A model of the Midas car repair shop on South Main Street was unveiled in 2022. A second structure, which looks like the Apollo Theatre, was installed last year. JVS Carpentry Instructor Paul Papesh said he hopes to add one or two structures per year.
Safety Town offers two free weeklong summer programs for rising kindergarten students that educate them about safety in many relevant areas. According to Oberlin Police Department Dispatcher Gwen Goul, children learn how to safely ride a bike, ride the bus, and cross the street. The program also teaches children safety regarding strangers, strange animals, and the internet, while also drawing from public services and other local institutions. School Resource Officer Billie Neadham, who runs Safety Town with Goul, said students hear from the Oberlin Fire Department and a 911 dispatcher to familiarize them with emergency services, talk to an employee from Oberlin Light and Power about electrical safety, and go to the Splash Park to learn about water safety.
“We try to ingrain [safety practices] in them,” Goul said. “We show them stop signs, [and to] try to be aware of their surroundings, where they are; don’t talk to strangers, things like that. It’s a reiteration program. … It’s a refresher course on and over and over again until you get it. It’s part of growing up.”
Goul, who has been running the program for over 25 years, said Safety Town was originally at Eastwood Elementary School but moved to Oberlin Elementary School after Eastwood closed in 2021. Goul got the idea of making a replica of downtown Oberlin from Safety Town facilities she had seen in other towns. She feels that the realistic nature of the facility will help students apply their knowledge to the real world.
“I think they’d be more willing to pay attention to what’s happening downtown when they [think] ‘Oh, hey, I remember I saw that building downtown at Safety Town … and we have crosswalks downtown which a lot of people don’t use,’ things like that,” she said.
Papesh said the project is an excellent way for Lorain County JVS students to practice skills that will be applicable in future careers.
“LCJVS students learn how to work within a customer’s parameters and budget constraints from start to finish,” he wrote in an email to the Review. “They learned to apply linear and scale mathematics, building framing construction and finishing with a multitude of finish materials.”
While working on the Apollo replica, students got hands-on experience with a variety of different materials and techniques. Carpentry students worked with lumber, roofing, siding, Azek trim, and acrylic glass; masonry students got experience doing the brick facade; connections students did print rendering for the vinyl wrapping and 3D printing the letters on the Apollo’s sign.
Melissa Linebrink, director of communications for Oberlin School District, endorsed the program and thanked those who make it possible in an email to the Review.
“Safety Town teaches children safe practices both at home and school,” she wrote. “We are thankful that the Rotary Club of Oberlin and Oberlin Police Department support our students, as Safety Town is crucial since it teaches essential safety skills, promotes awareness, and may help students prepare for real-life situations.”
