Honors for crossing guard

Jerry Brewer doesn't care why the chicken crossed the road; he just wants to make sure it made it to the other side safely.

Brewer, a 16-year resident of Westlake Village, was recently named Oak Park's Crossing Guard of the Year.

Brewer, who is currently posted at Red Oak Elementary School, became a crossing guard following his retirement to stay busy and work with children.

Prior to helping children safely traverse busy streets, Brewer worked in the motion picture industry for 33 years as the director of quality control at MGM. He said his favorite aspects of the job are being outdoors and being able to help people.

"The traffic around Red Oak can get a bit hectic," Brewer said. "A lot of people use the street as a shortcut to the freeway, which leads to a lot of bogged-up traffic and angry drivers."

But traffic is just a minor bump in the road for Brewer, who received Naval commendations for his service in World War II and the Korean War.

"Jerry is incredibly tough. He just went through a major surgery and did everything he could to quickly get back to work," said Pam Stringer, a collegue of Brewer. "He went through a lot of trouble to get back so he could help the kids and their parents."

When Brewer isn't ushering children safely across the street, he enjoys traveling with Anita, his wife of 52 years.