One Lawrence resident stops traffic in honor of her birthday

Billy Keefe decided to celebrate her birthday in an unusual way.

Arlo Paden, 1, left, grins at Brett Stoppel, Lawrence, as they participate in a group hug Thursday evening in the middle of a crosswalk on Massachusetts Street. Billy Keefe, of Lawrence, organized the flash mob and asked her friends to wear red and come to South Park at 6:15 p.m. as a celebration of her birthday. Flash mobs, which started in New York in 2003, involve a group of people gathering in a specific location to do a specific act for a specific length of time. Flash mobs are usually organized on the Internet.

Lawrence.com blog: My Punk Heart