Veteran school bus driver Delbert Brauning says he loves his student passengers, tends to get involved in their lives.
Written By Lisa Breslin
School bus drivers are a special breed. You might imagine that they need the patience of Job. Or that they burn out quickly. But some have the eyes of poets, and others are philanthropists and mentors.
Delbert Brauning has been driving a school bus for Carroll County Public Schools for more than 10 years. He loves the students on his bus and the scenic route that winds through the hills of Keysville and Detour to the front doors of Francis Scott Key High School. A successful building contractor for more than 40 years, Brauning considers the time he spends with the students his way of giving back.
Mary Renshaw, who drives children to Mt. Airy Elementary and High Schools, revels in the beauty of her route and the personalities of her passengers. She has driven a school bus for 10 years.
Gene Lowry, whose route also takes him through Mt. Airy, feels that he is not just a bus driver, but a mentor to the students who ride with him. A retiree, he has been on the road to school for three years.
Like many drivers, Brauning tends to get involved in the lives of his passengers: “People have always helped me along the way,” said Brauning. “It’s time for me to help them. Hopefully this will start a chain reaction of kindness.”
Students count on Brauning’s cheerful greeting every morning and his subtle way of conveying one significant message: Respect yourself so you can respect, and be respected, by others. Brauning does not have a poster on his bus conveying that message. He does not have to say it to guarantee that his riders get it. They know.
He knows how many riders are on the Honor Roll at their school (13). He knows what they like to do in school and at home, and he knows if they are homeless.
“Delbert Brauning is kid-oriented and community-oriented for sure,” said Brauning’s supervisor, John O’Meilly. “He always wants to give back. He is the ideal contractor and the ideal person to be there one-on-one with the students.”
Two years ago, Brauning started offering scholarships – $500 to $800 stipends – to outstanding students on his bus to help them pay for books at college. Matt Cox, 19 and a history major at Carroll Community College, is one recipient.
“I used the money for supplies and books,” said Cox. “It really helped.” Cox rode Brauning’s bus for four years.
“Mr. Brauning’s good mornings and smiles give me a good mindset to go to school and do well,” said Matt’s brother, Andrew, 16, who still rides the hilly route. “But no one wants to sit in the Honor Seat.”
That front row seat is saved for the riders who don’t stick to Brauning’s rules.
“A ninth grader spent a lot of time there once,” said Brauning. “But in general, I find that if you tell them what you expect from them and expect the best, they deliver.”
Brauning credits four years in the Air Force as root of his convictions; that and a lifetime with a family of farmers. His granddaughter, Mikayla Story, of Littlestown, inspires him to convey the message about respecting yourself so you can respect others. A child with special needs, Mikayla’s life has been filled with good people, Brauning said. And the world can never have enough good people.
Mary Renshaw is one of those people. She has a poet’s eye for beauty.
“I wish I could paint a picture of everything I see in the morning,” she said. “The dew hanging off the cobwebs, fall colors on a pond, drop-dead gorgeous sunrises.
“The only drawback about driving a bus,” said Renshaw, “is that it is not full-time. I love driving up to the the bus stop and seeing the little ones smiling. And I love interacting with the teens; they show me their acceptance letters to college; they talk about their good grades. I never would have picked this career, but I have no doubt it is my calling.”
Like Brauning, driver Gene Lowry has found that “if you treat [the students] with respect, you get respect. The students need the mentorship. If you discipline, you do that with respect, too, rather than downgrading them.
“I love it when the students give back,” said Lowry. “Sometimes you don’t think that you have touched their lives, but they tell you. As they leave on the last day, they say, “I’m going to miss this bus.”
Approximately 27,500 students are enrolled in Carroll County Public Schools (CCPS) each year and nearly 26,500 of these students ride the familiar yellow school bus, according to Keith Shorter, supervisor of transportation for CCPS. More than 360 buses will travel more than 5.3 million miles to provide school transportation this year.
