Public affection AWS
EDITORIAL
Public affection Reaching out to the young creates love for the industry You really need to talk with His words just deflected off my ears, because someone who does not know I was with my son, and he just could not take all their colors yet. his eyes off the enormous yellow snowplow Yes, my 21/2-year-old son has in front of him. That color was ingrained in trouble with his yellows and his head that day. blues, but to hear him drool When the curtain closed, a survey was poout simple sentences describlitely placed in my hand. It was yellow too, ing his recent but failed to put me in the jaunt around the same kind of toddler trance. Elgin, Ill., Public I was dealing from a sharp BY BILL Everybody rememWorks Department memory of public works acbers that friendly WILSON grounds can protivities during the year, and I police officer or fireEditorial Director vide you with an promptly pepper-sprayed the fighter flashing their advanced educapiece of research with low [email protected] tion in the impresscores for items like snow reshiny badge in the sion our industry moval and fall leaf pickup (in middle of kindergarcan leave. Elgin these failures made loten class and creatI was not really expecting much from the cal headlines, but they were ing an instant batch open house. When my wife handed me a flibad enough to go national). of cookie-eating er announcing the event, I thought it would The concept of recruiting groupies. Can you be limited to a walk around a snowplow and instant feedback from resiimagine the effect a handshake with the local garbage collecdents ranked high in terms of a field trip played tor. As a member of the trade press I have of class, even if they did try out in front of an been the grand marshal of countless parades to let the entire process go excavator? around public works garages. At the next down a little easier by offerone I am going to demand to see their coting a free hot dog and pop. ton candy machine. This industry always talks The open house in Elgin carried the scent about the need to school of a circus and the chatter of an amusement park. There prospects at the high school and college levwas a sandpit where kids could maneuver junior-size el. So why not hit them more when they are loader backhoes in search of missing pipe, and just learning those colors? Everybody remembers beyond the digging maneuvers was a life-size garbage that friendly police officer or firefighter flashtruck in full operation. A train spun kids and their paring their shiny badge in the middle of kinents through the different stations of the garage. Trucks dergarten class and creating an instant batch were propped up; wood chippers were experiencing of cookie-eating groupies. Can you imagine small doses of uncharacteristic splendor; and Recycling the effect of a field trip played out in front of Man was waving his cape through shots of high-fives a couple of excavators and a dozer? It’s a pot and thumbs-up. of gold at the end of a rainbow. My son’s eyes were wider than the moon. In fact, it was as if he were pointing up at the newest space shuttle. Our industry was firing up his rocket. But the one stop that made him and all the others feel like they were walking on air was the street sweeper and snowplow reality tours. Each child was able to ride in the front seat with true operators. I didn’t tell our truck driver what I did for a living. He quickly went into his tale of the city, calling Elgin residents spoiled after he heard them stomp their feet through an entire winter.
6
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JUNE 2008
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ROADS & BRIDGES
WWW.ROADSBRIDGES.COM
Public affection Reaching out to the young creates love for the industry You really need to talk with His words just deflected off my ears, because someone who does not know I was with my son, and he just could not take all their colors yet. his eyes off the enormous yellow snowplow Yes, my 21/2-year-old son has in front of him. That color was ingrained in trouble with his yellows and his head that day. blues, but to hear him drool When the curtain closed, a survey was poout simple sentences describlitely placed in my hand. It was yellow too, ing his recent but failed to put me in the jaunt around the same kind of toddler trance. Elgin, Ill., Public I was dealing from a sharp BY BILL Everybody rememWorks Department memory of public works acbers that friendly WILSON grounds can protivities during the year, and I police officer or fireEditorial Director vide you with an promptly pepper-sprayed the fighter flashing their advanced educapiece of research with low [email protected] tion in the impresscores for items like snow reshiny badge in the sion our industry moval and fall leaf pickup (in middle of kindergarcan leave. Elgin these failures made loten class and creatI was not really expecting much from the cal headlines, but they were ing an instant batch open house. When my wife handed me a flibad enough to go national). of cookie-eating er announcing the event, I thought it would The concept of recruiting groupies. Can you be limited to a walk around a snowplow and instant feedback from resiimagine the effect a handshake with the local garbage collecdents ranked high in terms of a field trip played tor. As a member of the trade press I have of class, even if they did try out in front of an been the grand marshal of countless parades to let the entire process go excavator? around public works garages. At the next down a little easier by offerone I am going to demand to see their coting a free hot dog and pop. ton candy machine. This industry always talks The open house in Elgin carried the scent about the need to school of a circus and the chatter of an amusement park. There prospects at the high school and college levwas a sandpit where kids could maneuver junior-size el. So why not hit them more when they are loader backhoes in search of missing pipe, and just learning those colors? Everybody remembers beyond the digging maneuvers was a life-size garbage that friendly police officer or firefighter flashtruck in full operation. A train spun kids and their paring their shiny badge in the middle of kinents through the different stations of the garage. Trucks dergarten class and creating an instant batch were propped up; wood chippers were experiencing of cookie-eating groupies. Can you imagine small doses of uncharacteristic splendor; and Recycling the effect of a field trip played out in front of Man was waving his cape through shots of high-fives a couple of excavators and a dozer? It’s a pot and thumbs-up. of gold at the end of a rainbow. My son’s eyes were wider than the moon. In fact, it was as if he were pointing up at the newest space shuttle. Our industry was firing up his rocket. But the one stop that made him and all the others feel like they were walking on air was the street sweeper and snowplow reality tours. Each child was able to ride in the front seat with true operators. I didn’t tell our truck driver what I did for a living. He quickly went into his tale of the city, calling Elgin residents spoiled after he heard them stomp their feet through an entire winter.
6
•
JUNE 2008
•
ROADS & BRIDGES
WWW.ROADSBRIDGES.COM
