The cooler weather that signifies autumn’s arrival was not enough to stop families from Albert Einstein Elementary School in Redmond from participating in the school’s second annual Walk-to-School Day Wednesday morning.

Crowds of students and parents alike lined Northeast 116th Street as they hustled to arrive before the morning bell — and get out of the cold.

With a city-wide push to be more green and environmentally friendly, principal Melissa Pointer said Walk-to-School Day is a way for them to do their part.

Third-grader Grace Haegele agreed.

“It saves a lot of gas,” she said.

Grace said her mother usually drives her to school, but the two walked to school on Wednesday and they really enjoyed it.

Mother Kari Haegele said they couldn’t walk the whole way because they live too far from Einstein and their neighborhood doesn’t have sidewalks, so they parked at PCC Natural Markets at 11435 Avondale Rd. N.E. and walked from there.

Pointer said many Einstein students live too far from the school to walk the whole way, so the PTSA contacted PCC to make sure it was OK for people to park at the store, which it was.

“They are so generous to our school in so many ways,” Pointer said about the store.

The distance from PCC to Einstein is a little less than a half mile and Haegele said it was only about a five-minute walk, but most of the walk was uphill.

She added that the walk was quite brisk with the cooler temperatures and that walking to school — even if only part of the way — is something she can see them doing in warmer weather.

In response, Grace pointed out that they had that opportunity earlier this year.

“We could’ve done it the first week of school,” she told her mother.

Haegele added that Walk-to-School Day is also a great way to build community as she had the opportunity to speak with other parents as she normally wouldn’t be able to do this if she were in her car. She said it was also a good way to remind the community of the school’s presence and that they should be more cautious when driving while children are present.

In addition to Pointer welcoming everyone to school Wednesday morning, Redmond Mayor John Marchione was also on campus to greet and introduce himself to students, saying he was the “principal of the city” when explaining to the younger students what his job is. Marchione also handed out special hats and blinkers to the students to mark the occasion. This was his first time doing this at Einstein but said he had done something similar at another Redmond school a few years ago.

“Walking has many benefits,” Marchione said. “We’d all be healthier if we all walked 15 minutes a day.”

He said his kids walked to school when they were in junior high and high school and it was a good way for them to learn how to be self reliant and responsible for their own timeliness.