Each fall, students at P.S. 126 join with school children  throughout New York City by  participating in Common Sense New York’s “Penny Harvest Program,” in which the children embark on a mission to collect as many pennies as they can. The pennies are then converted into dollars and allocated for various community services and improvements. 

This year, after gathering roughly $850 worth of pennies (with Common Sense New York chipping in additional funds to bring the total to $1000,)  students had a special cause in mind: the renovation of the High Bridge.

The children of P.S. 126 were clearly inspired by the announcement, made by city officials on November 17, that the bridge will be reopened to the public. Many students from the school were invited to the press conference held that day on the Bronx side of the bridge, at which Bronx Borough President Adolfo Carrión,  city parks commissioner Adriane Benepe, and Councilmember Helen Diane Foster were only some of the more prominent names in attendance.

Several local elected officials and community leaders spoke directly to the children, emphasizing their involvement in an event that would connect the past and the future of their community. “Write down today’s date,” Alianza Dominicana executive director
Moises Perez told the P.S. 126 students.  “Because 10, 20, 30 years from now, you’re going to say ‘I was there the day the footbridge was reopened.’”

It was a message that apparently resonated with students. “That day, I felt like we were part of history,” said Keldwin Torres, a 6th grader at the school. “They told us that we were some of the first students that ever donated money to a bridge.”

Though a firm date was not set for the bridge reopening, Benepe provided an estimate of three or four years. The press conference marked the first time the city officially committed to restoring the High Bridge to public use since the structure closed more than four decades ago.

The results of a several-year long study on the bridge conducted by the Department of Transportation is now available for public viewing at the library of the city parks department, said Ellen Macnow, coordinator of interagency planning for the department’s Capital Projects Division.  An executive summary of the report indicates that elements of the bridge needing repair include missing mortar between the bridge’s walls and arches and weakened or missing tie rods at the top of the bridge. The report also recommends furnishing the bridge with new railings, and replacing the walkway entirely.

Macnow said the total cost for repairs needed to make the bridge accessible would be between $20 and $30 million, and that the bill for these changes plus other aesthetic improvements not directly related to safety—such as painting and rust-proofing—would be $60 million.

Congressman Jose E. Serrano has already allocated $5 million towards the bridge reopening, and Macnow expressed confidence that other local politicians would follow suit. “We know that we have quite a few friends that were at that event,” Macnow said.

After the press conference, P.S. 126 students received a rare opportunity to walk on the foot bridge, taking in a spectacular view of the sun sparkling on the Harlem River below, with late- fall yellows, reds, and oranges shining from the trees on its banks. While on the bridge, the students also had their picture taken with Carrión and were interviewed by local television stations.

“It’s beautiful! Fantastic!” enthused Sahiem Baines, 11, as he walked the bridge for the first time.  Baines said he hoped to  make new friends across the bridge in Washington Heights, visit the hospital where he was born (New York Presbyterian), and more easily access the High Bridge pool.

Indeed, the ability to use the pool on the other side seemed to be the element of the bridge reopening that excited the greatest number of children in attendance.  Currently, swimmers must travel all the way to the 181st Street Bridge to access it. 
Gwendolyn Robinson, a teacher at P.S. 126, shared her students’ excitement. “Me, personally, I was one of those people who used to sneak across and go to use the Highbridge pool,” she admitted.

Many students later said they felt nervous walking on the bridge. “It felt weird, when I got there,” said 6th-grader Ziystar Castillo. “Like it was going to break apart because it was so old.”

The desire to make sure the bridge is safe was one reason students decided to donate the money to the High Bridge cause, said sixth-grader Amy Morales. “We’re planning to donate the money so they can fix the bridge, so it could be safer for people to walk across,” Morales said.

Nadine Foster, the principal of P.S. 126, said the school’s students decided on their own to donate Penny Harvest funds to the bridge. “I was so proud of them,” Foster said. “Proud of the way they think.”

In addition to the students and the community as a whole, the announcement that the bridge would reopen was a moment of glory for Joseph Sanchez, Highbridge Catalyst Coordinator for the city parks department, whom Benepe referred to as “probably the man of the hour, the man of the day.”

Sanchez has worked tirelessly during the past several years to advocate for the bridge’s reopening, leading walking  tours of the bridge on weekends and holding community events designed to connect residents with the historic structure. Sanchez, too, praised the enthusiasm of the children and said the day was an emotional and exciting one for him personally.

“I didn’t believe it,” Sanchez said, “until the day after. I saw it on the news and people were calling me.”