Bus Driver Honored

Even before Katonah-Lewisboro Schools’ bus driver Carol Rivera Gaffey received the award of National Special-Needs School Bus Driver of the Year, several of the students she transports daily, who were in the audience, began cheering and clapping!

The students’ spontaneous applause at the December 5 presentation reflects the care and attention that Gaffey pours into her work and demonstrates why she received the annual award from AMF-Bruns of America, a manufacture of special needs products.

Nora Beltran, supervisor of the District’s Transportation Department, nominated Gaffey for the award last spring. “Carol never knew about it until I told her she won,” said Beltran.

Gaffey has been with the District for seven years, and driving its special needs buses for the last two. The Transportation Department runs eight round-trip school bus runs for special needs students each day. The buses are small, transport approximately ten students each and are staffed by a trained monitor (and, in one case, a nurse) as well as a driver. Many offer door-to-door service.

In her letter of nomination, Beltran highlighted Gaffey’s work with a nonverbal student to demonstrate how she goes the extra mile to care for students and ensure that each one has a positive experience on her bus.

“She is the passenger’s voice,” said Maritza Valentin, national account manager for AMF-Bruns of America, at the award ceremony. “It is evident that her efforts have not only improved the student’s experience but also impacted her positively. “

“It’s my pleasure,” said Gaffey to the audience of family, fellow bus drivers and District administrators as well as several of her passengers. “I love my job.”