In my experience, pupil transporters are compassionate, caring people who are dedicated to doing their jobs well and going the extra mile for the students they serve.

For many, this compassion and dedication extends to the communities they serve, as exemplified by the staff at Franklin, Mass.-based Vendetti Buses/Vendetti Motors.

A volunteer for the Franklin chapter of NEADS (National Education for Assistance Dogs Services) recently contacted Vendetti Bus with the hope of receiving assistance in training service dogs on the correct way to enter and ride a bus. 

(NEADS is a program that trains service dogs for deaf or disabled Americans and for combat veterans. It’s important that the dogs receive training on how to walk on and off the bus, sit or lay in between the seats and get accustomed to the motion of the bus when it’s in operation.)

“When the volunteer contacted Vendetti Bus to rent a bus for an hour or two for this purpose, the owner, Joe Vendetti, and his daughter Julie donated not only the bus, but offered to pay a driver for the bus for as long as they needed the bus,” said Patricia Gipps, assistant vice president/senior loss control consultant at School Transportation Association of Massachusetts Workers' Comp. Self-Insurance Group Inc./FutureComp.

Gipps added that when the call went out to the company’s drivers for the job, there was an “amazing response from the employees, who wanted to donate their time for the event."

“Our hats are off to the Vendetti family/staff for their community support. It is very much appreciated,” she said.

Several photos from the training day are below.











Has your operation participated in any events to assist members of your community? Tell us about them by posting a comment below or sending an e-mail to info@schoolbusfleet.com. If you have photos from the event(s), be sure to send those as well!

Until next time,

Kelly Roher
Managing Editor