In his first year of driving a Clayton County School Bus after more than 21 years driving a tractor trailer, L.D. Green is a tower of confidence as he prepares for his afternoon routes home from school.
This year he has exchange hauling everything from computers and tires for a far more precious and priceless cargo, Clayton County public school students.
Green, a Henry County resident and father of seven, has begun his initial year as a Clayton County School bus driver and, so far, he believes taking on the responsibility of transporting youngsters to and from school has been one of the best decisions he has made.
Although, as a father, he waited at the bus stop to see his children leave for school countless times, Green said he originally never considered driving a school bus.
“I didn’t feel I had the patience for it, especially dealing with children and driving a school bus at the same time,” he added.
Although he had driven by the school bus display in Jonesboro numerous times without a second look, he saw it in a little different light one day and, for some reason he said, felt compelled to look into it.
“I don’t really know what made me do it, but I felt I’d like to give it a shot and went on and applied to be a bus driver,” he said.
“I talked to some veteran bus drivers and decided to go through the training and I now see it as something I love doing and consider it one of the best jobs I have ever had,” Green said.
He admits the pay to drive a school bus is not as good as it was when he drove a tractor trailer, “but it just feels right for me at this stage in my life.”
“I feel I am making a positive difference in the lives of these children, which means more to me than anything,” Green said.
In addition to his own routes, he also helps out with other school routes when the need arises.
As a bus driver, Green arises at 5:10 a.m. and arrives at the bus barn on North McDonough Road behind Jonesboro High School by 6:15 a.m.
Green said there is a “personal side” of driving a school bus.
“With children, you are dealing with many different personalities in a closed-in school bus,” he said.
“As the bus driver, you are the first person connected with school these kids see in the morning and the last person connected with school they see each day,” Green said. “You have a great amount of interaction with the kids.”
He has discovered if a bus driver can greet a student by name in the morning and say goodbye to them by name when letting them off in the afternoon, it means a great deal to the kids.
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