Introduction by Mr. Jerry Partlow-Wilson County Schools

 

I’m going to do my best to do this introduction justice.  When you start trying to say something brief about a driver who’s in his 50th year on the job, it’s kind of tough, but I’m going to give it my best shot.

 

I don’t think there’s a single person on our Transportation Team, who was surprised to hear that David Wright was being inducted into Tennessee’s Bus Driver Hall of Fame.  It isn’t just because of how long he’s been doing it, either.  David is not only the longest serving driver in our school system, but I dare say… he’s one of the most loved.  I guess, if you ask why that is… it would have to be because he enjoys being behind the wheel, and he loves kids.  As drivers go, those are about the best attributes you could ever ask for. 

 

Over the years, several news outlets have done stories on David, including the Tennessean, which just did a feature story on him in December, when he launched his 50th year.  I read back through some of those articles and thought I’d just share a few of the more interesting facts about David.

 

• It’s not a very well-kept secret at this point, that his first stint behind the wheel happened when he was a student at Trousdale High School, back in the mid-50’s.  Needless to say, that wasn’t legal, but hopefully the statute of limitations on that has run out by now.  His driver would always let David take the wheel on his last stop of the day, as long as he kept his mouth shut. 
   

• David has an interesting philosophy when it comes to handling students.  His favorite thing to say is, “I don’t drive for you to like me.  I drive to get you to school!”  They love him anyway.
   

• We ran some numbers, and since David started, in 1967… he’s has had 26 new buses.  He’s only been involved in 3 accidents, none of which were his fault.  Since getting his last new bus in 2005, David’s transported students more than 100-thousand miles!  That’s a pretty good track record.
   

• It’s also no secret that David is an avid fan of Lebanon High School sports.  Initially, he started driving on all the field trips for the free meal and entrance into all of the games.  To this day, he’s still the most requested driver by our sports teams at Lebanon High.

 

It’s my honor to introduce this year’s inductee into the Tennessee Bus Driver Hall of Fame… David Wright.