CLARKSDALE HAPPENINGS, Aug 2024

CLARKSDALE HAPPENINGS

AUG. 2024

"The greatness of a community is most accurately measured by the compassionate actions of its members." – Coretta Scott King

Tax Free Holiday       Aug 2nd - 4th

Election Aug  6th

Farmer’s Market (9-Noon) Aug  17th

City Council Mtg (6:30pm City Hall)  Aug  20th

https://clarksdale-mo.com/ Find this newsletter, pay your bill, official minutes, reports, agendas, news about current projects, and more!

Public Hearing on Tax Levy scheduled for Tues., Aug. 20, 2024 @ 6:00 pm prior to the Council meeting @ City Hall

Clarksdale Christian Church - VBS -Aug 4th thru 9th -Aug 4th Kick-off at 5:00 pm in the city park with a water side. Aug 5th - 8th VBS 6:00 - 8:30 pm Games, Songs, Bible Stories, Crafts, and Snacks. Aug 9th Family Night program and refreshments.

Farmers/Flea Market -Free! 9-12pm, Changed to Aug. 17th at the large pavilion City Park. Looking for vendors and shoppers! Call or email  City Hall at 816-393-5363 or cityofclarksdale@yahoo.com 

DeKalb CountyTreasure Hunt  Saturday,Sept. 21st, 7:30 am – 4:00 pm, a county-wide yard sale. Call to get your sale on a map today! 816-393-5363. Spaces available in the  city park also. Get stickers on your passports for all 7 towns, Amity, Clarksdale, Maysville, Osborn, Stewartsville, Union Star, & Weatherby  and be entered in a drawing for a $100 prize! Get maps and passports from any city hall.

Coming Soon! Paperless water bills!

New Water/Sewer/Maintenance Supervisor - Clarksdale’s very own Alex Pfouts has taken over the Water/Sewer/Maintenance Supervisor. Alex works full-time outside of Clarksdale, but will work for Clarksdale part-time evenings and weekends.  

Clarksdale Advancement Foundation  is looking for great people who want to make Clarksdale fantastic and help us achieve our goals. Come to our next meeting Thurs., Aug 8th at 6:30pm at City Hall. Snacks provided. “Volunteering is the ultimate exercise in democracy. You vote in elections once a year, but when you volunteer, you vote every day about the kind of community you want to live in”.~Author Unknown

Clarksdale Advancement Foundation - Flocking FUNdraiser! - From Aug. 5th to Aug. 16th

The migration of our feathered friends will soon begin! Any guesses as to who will be “flocked” first! 

If you would like to have our flock migrated to a friend's yard, please contact us to set up a time for a small donation to the Clarksdale Advancement Foundation. All proceeds will be going towards either increasing the flock or various projects that are in the works for the betterment of the Clarksdale Community. Please feel free to take pictures when you have been “flocked” and tag the foundation in the post! This is all in fun, as the summer winds down and we move into our next season.

Fresh Mobile Pantry - Second Harvest Community Food Bank - Wed., Aug 14th , 2024. Clarksdale City Park - 10am - 12pm  - While Supplies Last- Open to the Public. Please tell your friends and neighbors. Everyone is welcome. {NOTE: mandate from 2nd Harvest, we have been limited to three families per vehicle.} To sign up for our text alert system email your full name, phone number, and zip code to info@shcfb.org. This is the quickest and most effective way to get information on schedule changes. Visit www.shcfb.org  for more assistance options.The 2nd Harvest Food Pantry, sponsored by the Clarksdale Lions Club and the Clarksdale Christian Church.

The Clarksdale  Lions Club meets every 2nd and 4th Thursday of each month and we welcome anyone to come and hear what our club does for the community and we are always looking for new members.

Coming!  Trunk-or-Treat! Saturday, Oct., 26- Trunks & Helpers needed!

Breakfast with Santa  Saturday, Dec. 14th- Santa’s Helpers needed! Call City Hall to sign up for the Parade of Lights!

Bus Safety

Students are about 70 times more likely to get to school safely when taking a bus instead of traveling by car. That’s because school buses are the most regulated vehicles on the road; they’re designed to be safer than passenger vehicles in preventing crashes and injuries; and in every state, stop-arm laws protect children from other motorists.

•       Different by Design: School buses are designed so that they’re highly visible and include safety features such as flashing red lights, cross-view mirrors and stop-sign arms. They also include protective seating, high crush standards and rollover protection features.
•       Protected by the Law: Laws protect students who are getting off and on a school bus by making it illegal for drivers to pass a school bus while dropping off or picking up passengers, regardless of the direction of approach.

SEAT BELTS ON SCHOOL BUSES - SCHOOL TRANSPORTATION

Seat belts have been required on passenger cars since 1968; and 49 states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws requiring the use of seat belts in passenger cars and light trucks. There is no question that seat belts play an important role in keeping passengers safe in these vehicles. But school buses are different by design, including a different kind of safety restraint system that works extremely well.

Large school buses are heavier and distribute crash forces differently than passenger cars and light trucks do. Because of these differences, bus passengers experience much less crash force than those in passenger cars, light trucks and vans.

NHTSA decided the best way to provide crash protection to passengers of large school buses is through a concept called “compartmentalization.” This requires that the interior of large buses protect children without them needing to buckle up. Through compartmentalization, children are protected from crashes by strong, closely-spaced seats that have energy-absorbing seat backs.

Small school buses (with a gross vehicle weight rating of 10,000 pounds or less) must be equipped with lap and/or lap/shoulder belts at all designated seating positions. Since the sizes and weights of small school buses are closer to those of passenger cars and trucks, seat belts in those vehicles are necessary to provide occupant protection.

Bus Stop Safety

BEST PRACTICES GUIDE - REDUCING THE ILLEGAL PASSING OF SCHOOL BUSES

The greatest risk to your child is not riding a bus, but approaching or leaving one. Before your child goes back to school or starts school for the first time, it’s important for you and your child to know traffic safety rules. Teach your child to follow these practices to make school bus transportation safer.

FOR PARENTS - PEDESTRIAN SAFETY

Safety Starts at the Bus Stop

Your child should arrive at the bus stop at least five minutes before the bus is scheduled to arrive. Visit the bus stop and show your child where to wait for the bus: at least three giant steps (six feet) away from the curb. Remind your child that the bus stop is not a place to run or play.

Get On and Off Safely

When the school bus arrives, your child should wait until the bus comes to a complete stop, the door opens, and the driver says it’s okay before approaching the bus door. Your child should use the handrails to avoid falling.

Use Caution Around the Bus

Your child should never walk behind a school bus. If your child must cross the street in front of the bus, tell him/her to walk on a sidewalk or along the side of the street to a place at least five giant steps (10 feet) in front of the bus before crossing. Your child should also make eye contact with the bus driver before crossing to make sure the driver can see him/her. If your child drops something near the school bus, like a ball or book, the safest thing is for your child to tell the bus driver right away. Your child should not try to pick up the item, because the driver might not be able to see him/her.

FOR DRIVERS

Make school bus transportation safer for everyone by following these practices:

•       When backing out of a driveway or leaving a garage, watch out for children walking or bicycling to school.
•       When driving in neighborhoods with school zones, watch out for young people who may be thinking about getting to school, but may not be thinking of getting there safely.
•       Slow down. Watch for children walking in the street, especially if there are no sidewalks in the neighborhood.
•       Watch for children playing and congregating near bus stops.
•       Be alert. Children arriving late for the bus may dart into the street without looking for traffic.
•       Learn and obey the school bus laws in your state, as well as the "flashing signal light system" that school bus drivers use to alert motorists of pending actions:

o   Yellow flashing lights indicate the bus is preparing to stop to load or unload children. Motorists should slow down and prepare to stop their vehicles.

o   Red flashing lights and extended stop arms indicate the bus has stopped and children are getting on or off. Motorists must stop their cars and wait until the red lights stop flashing, the extended stop-arm is withdrawn, and the bus begins moving before they can start driving again. 

Do You Know When to Stop for School Buses in Missouri?

Just How Bad is the Issue? At the close of the 2017 school year, public safety officials set out to learn how many motorists were ignoring the law. During that one-day survey, one-third of school bus drivers reported at least one instance of a driver failing to stop when the bus’ STOP arm was deployed.

Fatalities at Bus Stops School bus-related crashes killed 104 people nationwide in 2022, down 3.7% compared to the 108 deaths in 2021, according to National Safety Council (NSC) tabulations of data from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA).

Do You Know When to Stop for School Buses?

The easiest way to understand Missouri’s stop-for-school-buses law, colloquially known as ”Jessica’s Law” is to remember that on a two-lane road — regardless of turn lanes — both lanes are required to come to a complete stop when a school bus is stopped and has its STOP arm extended. Motorists traveling in the same direction as a school bus — no matter how many lanes of traffic — should always stop when a school bus stops in front of them and extends its STOP arm.

When to stop for school buses: The difference between Missouri and Kansas

by : Travis Meier Posted : Aug 13, 2019

KANSAS CITY, Mo. — It’s back to school for many schools throughout Missouri and Kansas, and that means school buses are back on the roads.

The school bus extends its stop arm when picking up students, and the rules seem simple enough. Stop means stop. However, school bus laws differ slightly from state to state, and there’s one little difference between Missouri and Kansas.

Missouri - According to the Missouri State Highway Patrol, Missouri drivers must stop for school buses when the stop arm is extended on all two-lane roads, regardless of the direction of the drivers. Motorists also must stop in either direction even if there is a central turn lane in between the lanes of traffic.

However, motorists driving the opposite direction of the school bus DO NOT have to stop if there are four or more lanes on the road.

Kansas - Almost all of the school bus stop laws are the same in Kansas as they are in Missouri, according to the Kansas State Department of Education.

However, traffic moving in the opposite direction DOES have to stop for school buses on four-lane roadways if there is no median separating the different directions of travel. If there is a median, traffic moving in the opposite direction does not have to stop. Violation of these laws can result in more than $400 worth of fines.

This infographic has been updated from the original to further illustrate additional scenarios. This infographic is accurate as of January 2, 2018.