For some people, a school bus driver is merely someone who guarantees the security and safety of transporting children to school.
But for the community of Montevallo Elementary School in Alabama, their school bus driver, Mr. Wayne Price is a family. He is well loved and appreciated by the his passengers and it is not hard to see why.
Mr. Wayne Price has been working as a school bus driver in Montevallo, Alabama every morning since the year 2013. In the years he spent serving the children, it is understandable for him to care and look out for their welfare as well.
Most of the children in the school district of Alabama depends on the National School Lunch Program.
This program aims to help low-income families ensure that their children would be able to eat breakfast and lunch every time they go to school.
But because of the winter weather, the children might have to skip breakfast because their meals were delayed. Fortunately, Mr. Price took it upon himself to ensure that no child boarding his bus would go to school with a hungry stomach.
Before heading to school, Mr. Price dropped by their local McDonald’s and bought sandwiches for all of his passengers that day. In total, Mr. Price bought 50 sandwiches and made all of the children boarding his bus very happy and pleased.
One kid even made a comment about Mr. Price’s economic status. “One of the kids said, ‘Oh, Mr. Price, you must be rich.’” Mr. Price recalled and shared.
But the school bus driver is not rich. Although he does not have much material wealth, Mr. Price sure has too much love to give.
“I am not rich. I am in full-time ministry … but you sit there and think about it, you take your family out to dinner, and you can drop $50 going out to dinner, and it was nothing more than taking my family out to dinner. When it came down to the financial side, it was just second nature. I really did not think about it. I thought, hey this would be neat. I bet they will like this.” The kind school bus driver explained.
Mr. Price’s kind gesture and generosity for the students touched the heart of numerous people. In fact, his story was even featured on the Facebook page of Montevallo Elementary School, garnering thousands of likes and hundreds of shares. The post reads:
“Mr. Price, one of our bus drivers, truly demonstrates the spirit of Christmas! On Tuesday, when school was delayed due to icy roads and we weren’t able to serve breakfast, he purchased biscuits from McDonald’s for his entire bus of students! What a kind act that our students will forever remember! Thank you, Mr. Price, for making a lasting impact in the lives of our students!”
Mr. Price did not expect that his generosity to his passengers would get much attention. For him, he was only doing what is right. And although the recognition and words of praises sound good, the love and appreciation of children sound so much sweeter to his ears.
“When the kids got on I said, ‘So, what do ya want? Sausage? McMuffin?’ … I got some sweet kids and I get really attached to them … They were really appreciative. I dunno. I just love my kids. I got lots of fist pumps, lots of high-fives, lots of ‘Love you Mr. Price,’ lots of ‘Thank you Mr. Price.’” The kind school bus driver shared in an interview with a smile.
True to his words, for some of his passengers, he is not just a school bus driver but a father figure as well.
“I did not think he was going to do it. I am really thankful for having him as a bus driver, and he feels like a dad to me,” Elizabeth Lopez, a fifth grader and one of Mr. Price’s passengers, shared.
Certainly, Mr. Price’s thoughtfulness to the welfare of his passengers will be a fond memory of the students. Watch the video below and see why the students of Montevallo Alabama love their school bus driver so much!