Every weekday during the school year, parents send their most precious possessions, their children, off to school trusting they will arrive to school and back home safely.
It is due in large part to one individual, Connie Miller, that the precious cargo in Sedalia school buses makes that trip safely each and every day.
Earlier this year, Miller was selected as one of two national award winners from 110,000 individuals who work for FirstGroup, the parent company of First Student, transportation providers for Sedalia School District 200.
For Miller, it has always been about the children.
“Watching the early childhood children, the 3- and 4-year-olds and the young students grow up, graduate from Smith-Cotton High School and then introducing their family to me years later, has always been the best part of my job,” Miller said. “Then I get to start all over again with their children.”
Miller has witnessed multiple generations in her 38 years working in the district.
According to FirstGroup, Miller has served as location manager, driver trainer and driver for Sedalia 200.
“Connie’s commitment to her community and her customers is second to none,” Steve Triplett, Sedalia 200 assistant superintendent for buildings and grounds and support services, read on behalf of FirstGroup at the May 8 Board of Education Meeting. “The Sedalia School District completely relies on her counsel on all school bus transportation matters, and she is seen as a part of the Sedalia School District staff.
“Her vast knowledge of school bus operations and Missouri state rules cements her place as a valued advisor to the Central Region and Western Missouri-Kansas leadership,” Triplett continued. “Above all, she has been a calming presence, particularly during the 2011 tornado that destroyed the school bus location after which she worked hard to help get the operation running again.”
It was at that time Miller said she relied on a life lesson she had been taught years earlier — “Remember to always be prepared, you never know.”
“It was devastating to come out of the shelter and see the damage the storm had caused to the neighborhood and the bus lot,” Miller said. “Our concern was to make sure that everybody was safe and accounted for at the bus lot and that the location was safe to stay at.”
It is because of her dedication and commitment to others and her work that Miller was chosen for the award.
“Connie has achieved the respect and admiration of many people over the years, but what she treasures most is being affectionately known to generations of Sedalia people as the Bus Lady,” Triplett read.
Miller has no plans in the immediate future to slow down.
In the summer months she will prepare for the next school year by recruiting drivers and working on route changes.
“Company meetings are out of state in the summer months so you learn about all the new regulations in school busing, and how First Student is ‘Caring for students today, tomorrow, together,’” Miller said. “It’s a never-ending job but I love it and the people it involves.”
She did confess she will find some time to ride her “school bus-yellow” Harley Davidson and attend some tractor pulls, car races, and possibly even find time to relax at home on her deck.
“I feel I am a workaholic; the children in the Sedalia School District are always on my mind,” she said thoughtfully. “I have so many memories that I could talk about, when it comes to the children and parents that I have come across that I wouldn’t even know where to start.
“Every day is a new adventure and a new story,” she added. “I can tell you something that happened a couple of weeks ago that really touched me.”
Miller said that a young lady came to the bus lot to speak with her.
“Several years ago I had talked to her when she was in school about staying in school and how important it was to get her diploma,” Miller said. “She is now in her 20s and she had just got her GED and she wanted me to know that what I had said to her never left her mind this whole time and she just wanted me to know that she got it.
“It was such a heartwarming feeling to think that my words never left her mind,” Miller added. “I was so proud of her and what she had accomplished.”
