July 27, 2011:  Near the close of the school year, all five second grade classes came to visit us at Village Hall.  We have been doing this for quite a few years now and I can say the entire staff looks forward to their visit.  My understanding is that it ties in with the social studies curriculum introducing students to the first level of their government/history in the form of their immediate community.

The children also visit our police department and after a valiant effort, I have given up competing with our officers.  On the second grade interest radar, learning about the history of the Village has proven to be no match for jail cells, police cars, and sirens.

They are remarkable youngsters--so bright, attentive, inquisitive, and sweet.  They ask wonderful questions about government, terms, voting, etc., and being second graders they also ask important questions such as "Do you have a pet?" or "What is your favorite food?"

My favorite question this year was from a quiet young lady who asked if I thought my mom and dad were proud of me.  Of course, I called them that night in Albany just to check!

As a continuation of their community awareness, some of the classes did a walkabout in our downtown tasked with coming up with ideas for businesses to fill our empty storefronts.

Mrs. Rotach's class sent me their results, complete with artistic renderings of their new store concepts.  Mrs. Rotach gave the students a very important caveat to distinguish between the needs and the wants of the Bronxville community, a distinction we, as adults, perhaps could reinforce in our lives.

She described needs as things we must have in order to live a quality life.  A want is something you would like to have but can live without.

Armed with this distinction, the children came up with some wonderful concepts centering around themes of pets, sports equipment, food, and clothing.

The following are some of their wonderful ideas:  Landlords take note!

• "Sports are Us" and "Flipping Gymnastics" are needed because everyone should get fit in the Village and one student noted they did not think this was currently true ...
• A great variety of stores that sold pets were suggested including a "Lots O'Pets," "Parker's Pet and Vet," "Pets for People," and "E's Cat Store."  "E" candidly admitted she wanted a cat store just because she loved cats.  Another student thought that pets could be a need "because it solves loneliness for old people and it is someone to play with if you are an only child."
• Students wanted a shoe store that sells shoes in their size.  One fellow said it was definitely a need because he is just tired of getting splinters!  Another young entrepreneur would open "Shoetown Joe's" because he thought his family wasted too much gas traveling to buy his shoes, and it was dangerous to play any sport without the proper footwear.
• In the same vein, one student wanted a gas station on Pondfield Road because he has to ride too far with his mom to fill up.  He also suggested, in true entrepreneurial fashion, that an attached car wash could bring in added profits.
• Another second grader astutely rationalized that a toy store was a need, surmising that without toys to play with, kids could get bored and then in all kinds of trouble ...
• A student citing the pain of sunburn and resulting damage to the skin very smartly sees her "Hats for Heads" as a necessity in the Village.  It just confirms our youngsters are really listening and learning.
• A large number of children want a sporting goods store to buy all of their sports equipment.   If there was an overarching theme, it was the dislike of time spent in the car driving to find the things they need. This group really wants to shop local!
• One of the most ingenious stores proposed was "3,000 Inventions," stocking all the newest gadgets.   Our student-owner would be stocking items such as "spy phones, jet packs, and camera watches."   He believed keeping up with all new technology was an obvious need.  I believe we have a future Bill Gates among us!

Based on my interaction with our second grade youngsters, I am confident that our Village will be in good hands for years to come and our business district will thrive.