St. Vrain Valley School District bus driver and field trip coordinator John Costello never expected to be a driving force in the lives of middle-schoolers or that the kids would enrich his own life, when he initially took the part-time position over 15 years ago.
“I walked out that day with a job and thought, ‘Great, I have a job’ but what I didn’t expect was the way these kids became a second family for me over the years,” Costello said.
Costello was described by district peers and management as “the heart and soul of SVVSD transportation” and as he reflected on that he said, “I just showed up to do a job, these kids changed me, my heart and they made me want to become something that I didn’t think I had in me — a mentor.”
“The most rewarding part of this journey is growing with the families and getting to know all sorts of kids,” Costello said. “Some kids, like this one in particular that was on the Autism spectrum, taught me that these kids sometimes just need love and sometimes need discipline but also needed to know where the line was and how far they could push that line.”
The hardest part about his service with the district as a bus driver before becoming a dispatcher and field trip coordinator was notifying the parents he was taking a position at the district office.
“I wrote them all a letter and I cried that day, eight years later almost and it still touches me to the point of tears” Costello said. “In that letter I explained that would miss the kids and parents on my route and substitute routes, but that what their kids have taught me during my time as a bus driver about genuine love and compassion couldn’t be learned any other way — it was such an incredible journey to watch them grow up and leave for high school.”
When asked if he had any fun, interesting or heartwarming stories to share about being a bus driver, Costello said, “Wow, that goes straight to the heart, I mean, there are countless, but honestly it’s just the fact that I got to be there for these kids — even on their grumpy or hard days or the most exciting days for them, I simply got to share their ups and downs and sometimes just listen.”
Costello said that the middle school students on his routes gave him a purpose which was simply to be a mentor during their trials or be a listening ear, because he and his wife did not have children.
“I had this kid on one of my routes, he was nonverbal — never said anything, but he would come right up to me and crawl into my lap and hug me and what you realize is the vastness and capacity of a child’s love, that purest form of appreciation and love that only children really can offer,” Costello explained.
What he misses most about driving a daily bus route is, “the chatter, the excited conversations and yes, even the fears and tears and the other range of emotions a typical middle schooler goes through.” He said that sometimes included soothing test anxieties or rallying athletes for a big game or event.
“In a sense, I got the best job ever, I got to be grandpa to a lot of kids and see them right before and after school,” Costello said. He also described how many parents thanked him for talking their children through their highs and lows and even had parents thank him for giving the kids good advice and direction about being better, kinder and well-rounded young adults.
“There was this parent who thanked me for redirecting her kid and told me she would work on correcting the behaviors more at home,” Costello explained. “That kid just had an awful day and what happened at school came with him onto the bus and there was an incident, but I spoke to this kid and told him that the behaviors he was exhibiting were not ok.”
The recently turned 66-year-old said as he nears retirement it is increasingly “harder to pull that trigger to retire, because the district — these kids, they are my family now too and how do you say goodbye to people you’ve come to love so deeply?”
As for what advice he wanted to give future bus drivers, Costello said, “expect the unexpected and have a compassionate as well as understanding nature — because you don’t know the environment some of these kids leave behind on their way to school, or return to on their way home from school.” He also said, “expect to have your heart changed in a way that only being a mentor to children can do, the things you thought didn’t matter, suddenly matter and the things you thought mattered a great deal, well — through a kids eyes, love and affection, they just don’t.”
“Longmont has truly grown wildly in the 40 years that my wife and I have been here and the thing that makes the city so special is the people and the heart we have for one another,” Costello said.
John Costello
Age: 66
Occupation: St. Vrain Valley School District bus driver, field trip coordinator
Years in the St. Vrain Valley: 40
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June 20, 2021 at 06:10PM
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100: John Costello got a job as a bus driver and found a family - Longmont Times-Call
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