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How Does A Crossing Guard Make $14,000 Per Month? Thanks To A Little Creativity And The Fact That 'People Really Want Physical Things'
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A short morning shift helping kids cross the street doesn’t sound like a path to a five‑figure monthly income. But for one Vermont crossing guard, a creative idea turned a quiet corner intersection into the foundation of a small publishing business. Christine Tyler Hill, 36, works weekday mornings at a crossing in Burlington. During her roughly 50‑minute shift, she watches the flow of daily life — commuters passing by, children heading to school, neighborhood dogs on walks and the changing sky above the intersection. Those everyday observations now bring in about $14,000 a month for Hill, according to The Wall Street Journal. Hill originally worked as a designer and illustrator. In 2023, she took the crossing guard job partly as a way to reconnect with the rhythms of her city. While standing at the corner each morning, she started sharing short updates online she called a “cloud report.” The posts included simple moments from the intersection, such as a handwritten thank‑you note from a child, snow falling outside a corner store, a long‑haired dachshund passing by, or sketches she made of things she noticed. Trending: Most founders obsess over the wrong hires. See the 5 startup roles that actually determine whether a company scales or stalls. Followers quickly became invested, the Journal reported. When the updates slowed down, people started messaging her asking when the next report would appear. After freelance design work slowed, Hill decided to expand the idea. She saw other creators experimenting with subscription mail clubs and wondered, “What if I did a mail club?” In January, she posted a short video on TikTok offering a printed newsletter for $8 per month. Subscribers would receive an eight‑page magazine filled with her illustrations and reflections from the intersection and her garage studio. The response was immediate. The Journal reported that the video quickly attracted hundreds of thousands of views. Within days, about 1,000 people subscribed. When Hill temporarily paused new sign‑ups, a waitlist of about 3,600 people formed. Today she has roughly 2,000 subscribers, some paying annually at a discount. Hill’s operation is simple but growing. Each month she stacks around 2,000 copies of her newsletter into plastic postal bins and drives them to the local post office in her Honda Fit. The project has also connected her with readers around the world, including subscribers in Germany, Singapore and Australia, according to the Journal. “People really want physical things,” Hill told the Journal. “The response to it has been crazy.” Image: Shutterstock UNLOCKED: 5 NEW TRADES EVERY WEEK. Click now to get top trade ideas daily, plus unlimited access to cutting-edge tools and strategies to gain an edge in the markets. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga: APPLE (AAPL): Free Stock Analysis Report TESLA (TSLA): Free Stock Analysis Report This article How Does A Crossing Guard Make $14,000 Per Month? Thanks To A Little Creativity And The Fact That 'People Really Want Physical Things' originally appeared on Benzinga.com © 2026 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.