School bus aide helps special-needs student get new prosthetic leg

HARFORD COUNTY, Md. — A school bus attendant who helped a special-needs student by coordinating efforts to get her a new prosthetic leg is being honored by her school district, The Baltimore Sun reports.

Debbie Brown noticed that Sylva Green, a 17-year-old student on her bus last year, was suffering from pain and walking problems due to a prosthetic leg that kept falling off, according to the newspaper. Brown asked Danielle Lister, the transportation supervisor for Harford County Public Schools, to reach out to Shriners Hospitals for Children about getting a new prosthetic for Green, and Lister agreed.

Green received a new, free prosthetic leg with a Hello Kitty theme that she picked out from the specialized children's hospital, according to The Baltimore Sun. With the new prosthetic, she is able to walk more easily, and has been able to take part in activities that she would not have been able to before, such as dancing and touring a college campus. Green told the newspaper that the bus attendant made her feel hopeful and “like you can trust people.”

Brown is being honored with a Recognition of Excellence award by the school district, according to The Baltimore Sun. Lister told the newspaper she was impressed by Brown’s efforts and described her as “an incredibly compassionate person.”

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