A third-generation Coloradan, Jessica Sherwood
remembers returning to her hometown of Boulder after a 10-year
hiatus in Washington, D.C. “I actually cried,” she recalls, on
seeing the once-pastoral corridor between Denver and Boulder
transformed into an almost continuous mass of houses and
malls.
Determined to make a difference, Sherwood
decided to tout alternative transportation to a population that is
routinely overlooked – elementary schoolchildren. Now in her second
year of directing the Feet First program, Sherwood and her team of
10 volunteers have spoken to over 1,500 Denver-area students about
the many impacts cars have on communities. In a city that was
recently ranked seventh worst in road congestion nationwide,
Sherwood is keen to preserve “the remnants of the real
Colorado.”
“We hope the kids will take the
alternative-transit idea home and make it a family thing,” says Bob
Henry, spokesman for the Regional Transportation District, Denver’s
public transit service, and one of Feet First’s supporters.
Currently, Feet First is working with the district to organize a
Car-Free Day in September. To get involved, contact Jessica
Sherwood at 303/331-1673 or sjessica5@qwest.net.
This article appeared in the print edition of the magazine with the headline Small steps for change.
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