Photo by Mary Lou Budziak
Campus members who cross the street at the intersection of Euclid Avenue and Adelbert Road on a regular basis are used to seeing a familiar face. Whether it’s raining, snowing or a bright sunny day, Patrol Officer Mark Chavis helps students, faculty, staff and visitors safely maneuver this highly trafficked intersection.
Chavis, who has been with Case Western Reserve since 2002, was already well known among members of the campus community due to his friendly chatter and T3 Motion scooter. Now he has even more “fans” thanks to a Facebook page dedicated in his honor.
The page, created toward the end of spring semester, currently has more than 1,000 fans.
“I was tongue tied. It was a feeling of joy,” Chavis said was his reaction when he learned someone had created the page. “A lot of people go to work every day and never get told that they’re doing a good job. Students acknowledge what I do. It means a lot coming from the younger generation.”
Meghan Gois, a first-year student, created the Facebook fan page. She met Chavis during a campus tour. “We asked for directions, and he talked to my parents and me about the importance of visiting the school,” Gois recalled. She never forgot the patrol officer who offered her friendly advice.
While on Facebook, Gois searched for university fan pages. She typed potential options into the search engine. When she saw that there wasn’t one for Chavis she created the “Mark the Crossing Guard” page.
“It was spur of the moment. He’s an absolutely great guy and he deserves the attention,” Gois said.
Chavis said he always tries to give “150 percent” as a member of the university’s police department. “I’m everyone’s personal police officer.”