Husband and wife crossing guards have kept Elyria kids safe for decades

ELYRIA — Just south of the Northwood Schools Campus, Abbe Road North splits into four lanes at a busy intersection with Hilliard Road. For the past four years, Jean and Michael Bowen have guided students across that intersection every day, as they did across the city for decades before the new Northwood campus even opened. "I always tell my husband we don't want to pat ourselves on the back, but we know a lot of the parents now from being out here so long and they trust us with their kids," Jean Bowen said. "It's nice that the parents trust us with their little ones." The Bowens have been married for around 50 years, and between them they have been making sure the students of Elyria Schools cross the street safely for just as long. At the end of this school year both will hang up their neon vests. Jean has been a crossing guard for 30 years, picking it up as a part-time job and way to stay active following her retirement from a secretarial job at Bendix-Westinghouse. Michael joined her on the roads about a decade later, following his own retirement from Ford. Over the next 20 years, the duo ferried young Elyrians across the street to and from a number of schools throughout the city. But now, the pair is considering hanging up their handheld stop signs. "I love the kids, they are so funny," Jean Bowen said. "And I've seen them grow up, they come back to see me or they'll go by in their cars honking and waving, and I think 'Oh my God, I'm too old for this!' you know? But it's been wonderful. I've had beautiful kids … it's just time to move on." As Jean Bowen answered a question about retiring at the end of the year, a man turning left onto Abbe Road North rolled down his window and interrupted. "Yo! She's the greatest!" he shouted. Both Jean and Michael say interactions like that are what make being a crossing guard a special experience — being told by the community that they are appreciated and trusted. "I'm not the type of guy that I want a hoopla or a party or anything," Michael Bowen said. "But I don't mind it when people and parents come by and say 'thank you, you do a good job.' I like that, it makes you feel good." For many years Jean and Michael worked near different schools, but when they got the chance to work together they formed an effective team. That teamwork is on display every school day outside Northwood, as Jean guides students across Abbe Road North and Michael stops traffic at the entrance to the campus. All the while they communicate on their walkie-talkies; not standard issue for Elyria crossing guards, but a special touch that the Bowens bring from home to keep their kids even safer. Jean and Michael have worked at Northwood since it opened in 2020, as has the school's third crossing guard, Jim Holzhauer. The kids will be in need of new shepherds next year, as the Bowens and Holzhauer all plan to retire at the end of this school year. However, "this is probably the third year in a row I've said that," Holzhauer said. Approaching retirement, Jean can recall only two times she ever missed a day of school; once years ago when she had a nasty flu and once when Michael's father died. "We're always here," she said. "We never miss because … I don't trust my kids with anybody. That's why I'm gonna miss it, because all the parents love us and they know we take care of the kids." Contact Owen MacMillan at (440) 329-7123 or omacmillan@chroniclet.com.