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A pat on the back for quick thinking

A crossing guard is praised for calling authorities after seeing a stranger hovering around students.

By DOUGLAS R. CLIFFORD, Times Staff Writer
Published August 17, 2007

ADVERTISEMENT [Douglas R. Clifford | Times] Crossing guard supervisor Sharon Lough speaks during an orientation course for returning crossing guards at the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office in Largo.

LARGO - Pinellas County Sheriff's Office school crossing guard Sandra Stambaugh noticed the stranger right away.

Maybe it was the fact that he reeked of alcohol. Or the way he hovered around the children. Either way, something set her off.

"He would come and go" that day, Stambaugh said.

"I didn't particularly care for him, and I wasn't happy with the way he expressed himself. Then he got off the bike and talked to one of the kids, and I said, 'That was it.' "

Stambaugh, 59, who was helping children walk home from Ozona Elementary, called authorities to report suspicious contact between the man and an 8-year-old boy who crossed at her post at Alt. U.S. 19 and Tampa Road in Palm Harbor.

When Pinellas County sheriff's deputies arrived, they took Anthony Wayne Fimpel, 45, into custody near another nearby school, Palm Harbor Middle. According to the Sheriff's Office, Fimpel had an outstanding arrest warrant for an alcohol violation.

This wasn't his first brush with the law. Florida Department of Law Enforcement records show Fimpel has a long history of arrests on a variety of charges, including aggravated assault with a weapon, shoplifting and failure to appear in court.

Now Stambaugh is being recognized for her quick thinking on that day, March 2, 2006.

The 10-year veteran of the crossing guard program was nominated in the Florida Missing Children's Day Citizen of the Year category, said FDLE spokeswoman Kristen Perezluha.

Awards are given to individuals who have helped with missing children cases or efforts, Perezluha said.

Winners in six categories will be announced at a Sept. 10 ceremony by Gov. Charlie Crist. This is the event's ninth year.

Stambaugh said she decided to contact law enforcement after the boy said the man had offered to buy him a soda if he walked with him to a nearby convenience store.

"I do a lot of praying," Stambaugh said. "And I hope I don't see this man again."

Her supervisor, Sharon Lough, recognized Stambaugh on Thursday during a mandatory two-hour orientation for returning crossing guards at the Pinellas County Sheriff's Office in Largo.

"She is shy and very overwhelmed about this," Lough said. "She felt like she was just doing her job."

The Pinellas County Sheriff's Office school crossing guard program was launched by volunteers in 1972.

Today, it boasts more than 170 guards, 15 regional coordinators and one program supervisor.

The guards cover 197 school crossings in unincorporated areas of the county and the five contractual cities of Oldsmar, Safety Harbor, Seminole, Madeira Beach and Dunedin.

The program provides crossing guards for one high school, 11 middle schools and 34 elementary schools.

Times staff writer Tamara El-Khoury contributed to this report.

[Last modified August 16, 2007, 20:32:45]