Problem Solved at Marshall School

If you see a problem that you can't solve, tell someone who can help.

Marshall School parent Ernie Osle noticed that whenever it rains, parts of the school sidewalks flood so badly that they're impassable. The area around them is also muddy, and it's hard for students to get in and out of the school building.

"Our son has attended Marshall School now for 3 years," Osle told Patch. "I know this flooding has been a problem for at least that amount of time and likely much longer." He further notes that on rainy days, "Dr. Allen, who is a fantastic principal by the way, has to spend her very valuable time directing traffic around the problem!"

Osle told Patch, who relayed the message to Board of Education and South Orange officials. Word came through this morning; repair work by the South Orange Department of Public Works is scheduled to begin just after school lets out in June.

Osle is pleased and grateful, but there's a lesson here too. This Patch editor has been a Marshall parent for nearly a decade. I have trudged through and around that same soggy area of the playground.  I have muttered complaints to myself and probably even aloud. But I never, ever thought to tell anyone about the problem.

Not all problems can be addressed so quickly and easily, but there is a lesson here: if it's not a problem you can solve, pick up the phone, email, write. If the gaslight is burned out, call. If you see or smell smoke, call 911. If you're home at night, and something doesn't seem right at a neighbor's house, call 911 or SOPD non-emergency number: 973 763 3000. It only takes a minute.

So, next time you see something, go ahead: get in touch.