By Malaya Madison
While navigating the chaos and congestion of the Lovett carpool, you may have seen the friendly face of Officer Grier.
Officer Grier always offers a kind smile in the mornings and afternoons and makes sure we get through traffic safely.
When I asked him when would be a good time for an interview, he told me that his shift ends at seven p.m., so any time before then would work.
With his shift ending so many hours after carpool, I wondered what he does here when he’s not making sure we can cross the road safely. He shared that his job involves a lot of patrolling around the campus, making sure we are safe, and giving people directions.
He has been patrolling the streets of Lovett for around three years now, and was first recommended by a family friend.
Although that’s what brought him to Lovett, it’s our tight-knit community that has kept him here.
“I’ve noticed that most of the staff also went to Lovett,” he said. “So it’s a family and caring vibe here, and I really appreciate that.”
That vibe has been tested a bit by the destruction and construction, which has made the morning routine more chaotic. Of the many concerns, working out carpool has been a priority. Often, traffic is backed up within our school, down Northside, and up Paces Ferry.
“We have to make adjustments to pull as much traffic off those streets as possible,” he said, on top of keeping the parents happy and keeping the traffic flowing.”
While he acknowledged that it’s hectic, he said, “It’s the same old Lovett.” He believes “it’s going to work itself out.”
Based on the planning that’s going on, his hope is that “By this time, maybe next week, maybe in the next couple of weeks, we should have something solid to get you guys in and out faster,” he shared.
A key part of this, he believes, will be getting “the parents to get on board, so this can run as smoothly as it can.”
If he could give the parents some tips to get on board during carpool, it would be to not speed after they drop their child off. He said that’s usually the most hazardous thing he has to deal with. “There have been too many times where parents have tried to speed through this second lane and had to make an abrupt stop because a child is coming,” he said.
Of course, parents aren’t alone in being a bit heavy on the gas. “I can definitely tell who’s a student driver and who’s not,” he said. “You’ll see them flying through, and a lot of them play loud music”.
I asked him how he would design his perfect carpool lane to eliminate these imperfections, and he said he would just designate lanes for MS, LS, and US.
“So everybody has their own single place to drop off, and there won’t be any confusion,” he said.
As for his summer, his job doesn’t stop during summer break. He was here “the whole summer, dealing with the construction and camps.”
While working at Lovett brings a lot of seriousness and focus, there are also funny moments as well.
One of these moments recently occurred for Officer Grier.
Someone had locked themselves out of their car, and their son went to class, taking the keys with him. They had to track the son down and get the keys so the mom could leave.
“It was funny for me, but it wasn’t the funniest for the parent, obviously,” he said.
Before he came to Lovett, Grier was a very shy and quiet guy. Even though he claims to still be quiet, he’s recently noticed that he’s become slightly more talkative.
“I think that’s probably a positive from being here. I would say I’ve become a better person socially,” he shared.
He said if he hadn’t changed, I probably wouldn’t have even been able to get an interview with him.
Becoming more social has also led him to want everyone to interact with him more. He said it helps him remember a lot of us “because there are many faces here.”
Officer Grier works the morning and afternoon carpool, so there are two opportunities for you to say hello.
I did wonder which shift he prefers.
Mornings, he said, “because it is much cooler, and everybody’s smiling. Everybody’s in a great mood, so it makes me happy.”
