Don’t Neglect Your Kids In The Park

To the Editor:

My kids and I just spent a wonderful afternoon at Dickinson Park. Having three children, ages 3 and under, we have been to many parks in the area both last year and starting out this year. As usual I am amazed at the number of children running around, playing, and unsupervised!

Can someone please explain to me how a parent/nanny can allow their small children to run about carte blanche in a playground without trying to keep at least some sort of eye on them? I understand that the playground is a meeting place for adults as well as children (sometimes the only place adults can socialize!), but responsibility to our children comes first.

 Today a very small child, maybe 15 months, was toddling/crawling about in areas much too big for it, wanting to get down...where was the caregiver? I literally called for someone to come get the child, another unknown mother joining in the search, finally picking up the frightened child and holding it until the mother came from across the playground to rescue the child. Now, besides the fact that I have my hands full watching my own three younger children, I could have been anyone picking up that child and possibly walking away with it. The child could have been knocked over by the big kids (we know, play at your own risk when the big kids are around) and hurt/trampled upon, or even wandered away over to the creek (yes, my own twin 2-year-olds broke away and made a run for it, but mommies are always faster!).

There is also the number of children that are old enough to run around by themselves, but not old enough to respect other children; they go about knocking other kids down, climbing up slides when children are trying to slide down, climbing over the playsets tempting fate, etc. Because I am watching my small kids, I am able to control overwhelming situations involving them, but many of the smaller children have no parents around to defend them. I have to constantly remind my own 3-year-old to be mindful of other children: kids are kids, you have to keep reminding them to respect those around them or someone will get hurt, and still they forget!

Maybe I am paranoid after having been a nurse for 13 years and stitching up many small children for five of them, but please don’t expect other people to watch over your children for you while you sit around and talk. While I am not going to stand by and do nothing while your unsupervised child is in need or putting other children in dangerous situations, to those of us who are supervising our own children, our own child’s safety comes first.

Sincerely,

Liz Sortino

13 Turkey Roost Road, Sandy Hook                                 May 2, 2006