By Julie McCay Turner
Bedford joins an elite corps of just 36 school districts from Alaska to Wisconsin that have been named five times to the list of 100 Best Communities for Young People by America’s Promise Alliance.
Residents can celebrate the town’s achievement with cake in the lobby of the High School auditorium on Tuesday evening, before the actual award is presented during Town Meeting.
Beyond the fun and pride, Bedford Youth and Family Director Sue Baldauf noted that Bedford’s 100 Best designation comes with a $2,500 award that this year will support The Corner’s teen center evening programs.
“The award reflects the way Bedford conducts itself as a town, as well as the promises we make to our children” said Baldauf who has coordinated the town’s applications each year.
Long-time resident Marion Bryan raised her family in Bedford and recalled that she has “always felt kids in Bedford were fortunate in many ways. There weren’t the flashy places to congregate—thus the name ‘Deadford.’ Then those who couldn’t wait to get out were scrabbling to get back here to raise their children.” Bryan also noted long-standing programs to benefit kids, such as “early-on bicycle safety, paper re-cycling, getting kids to the symphony, scouting, activities in churches, and Bedford’s Santa program,” that have long made the town a great place for families.
Some of the town’s programs mentioned in this year’s award include the Bedford Education Foundation; the Bedford Community Partnership; the schools’ Peer Mentor program; R.I.S.E. (Ready, Independent, Successful, and Engaged); the schools’ Excel Program; teen activities at The Corner, and the school department’s iPad program for ninth grade students.
Although she doesn’t remember Bedford as a dull community growing up, Christine Anderson and her husband settled here because of the town’s “friendly and supportive” community, as well as its service groups, particularly BEST, the Bedford Elementary Schools Together parent teacher organization, along with the sports and other activities available to kids.
Suzanne Schmuhl Koller, another current resident who grew up in town, began selling real estate 12 years ago when “Bedford was a town that people would find by accident.” Koller says that Bedford has become a magnet for young families because of the community’s open attitude and great schools. In September, Bedford ranked tenth in Boston Magazine’s 2012 list of the area’s 50 best schools.
“There are so many ways to get to know people,” Koller continued, “[through] churches, schools, sports, activities and organizations. Bedford’s an open community where it’s easy to get connected.”
The 100 Best Communities for Young People’s website notes that Bedford “works to ensure youth have access to educational and recreational resources to help them grow to be healthy, caring and economically self-sufficient adults,” which is expressed by the commitment of winning communities to the program’s five promises: Caring Adults, Safe Places, A Healthy Start, Effective Education, and Opportunities to Help Others. Bedford’s Youth Task Force reflects the five promises through the participation of Youth and Family Services (caring adults); the Bedford Police Department (safe places); the Board of Health (a healthy start); the School Committee (effective education) and the Recreation Department (opportunities to help others).
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