After 30 years Button and Diane Powell have turned off the ignition to their school buses one last time. Two of Nyngan's long serving school bus drivers have hung up the keys to their school runs, after almost 1.5 million kilometers of driving. Mr Powell has driven the school bus to Mullengudery for nearly 30 years, with wife Mrs Powell driving her bus on the Coffils Lane-Pangee Road run for the same time. The pair bought the bus in 1989 becoming Powell's Bus Service, and quickly they became second parents to the school children they have driven too and from school each day. READ ALSO: Mrs Powell finished up her school run on March 16, exactly 30 years on the day she started. "It was an emotional day, the kids said 'when we get to Miandetta can we have a speech?', so I slowed down and as I started to talk I had to pull up because I couldn't see through the tears," Mrs Powell said. "I couldn't talk but all I said is 'you've all been wonderful and there's not much I can say'. "I bubbled all the way home and the only thing I could say to my husband is 'thank you for buying that bus, because I've had a good life'. "I don't cry normally, I'm a hard old bird, but I just said 'thank you'." Looking back over the years, Mrs Powell couldn't pick her fondest memory, saying all the kids she had ride on her school bus were as delightful as each other. "I've been lucky with superb kids, I've never had to go crook on anybody," she said. "They all had their own seats and got on and sat down, it's just been wonderful. "I just don't know what my fondest memory is because they're all good. "You look after them all like your own and I have just thoroughly enjoyed the whole experience." In her thirty years of driving almost 320 kilometers a day, Mrs Powell said she has only had one sick day in her life. "I was only saying the other day I broke my shoulder about nine years ago … and in 30 years that's the only time I've had off," the bus driver said. "I have never, ever had a sick day, it was only that I broke this jolly shoulder and I had to have about six weeks off." She however said she was pleased she could give the children on her run their last Easter eggs. "I have always all these years bought the kids Easter eggs and chocolates at Christmas, and I said to Button 'guess what? I get to give them their last Easter eggs'," Mrs Powell said. "It's just something you do and they get excited." While Langleys have bought the bus and taken it on, Mrs Powell said she and her husband have no plans of leaving town. "I'm not an overseas person, I'm a homing pigeon," she said. "My husband's a clay target shooter and we've got our caravan, I've always gone places with him clay target shooting … I'm just happy to jump in the caravan and go wherever he wants to go. "But we've got our family here … life's pretty simple."
After 30 years Button and Diane Powell have turned off the ignition to their school buses one last time.
Two of Nyngan's long serving school bus drivers have hung up the keys to their school runs, after almost 1.5 million kilometers of driving.
Mr Powell has driven the school bus to Mullengudery for nearly 30 years, with wife Mrs Powell driving her bus on the Coffils Lane-Pangee Road run for the same time.
The pair bought the bus in 1989 becoming Powell's Bus Service, and quickly they became second parents to the school children they have driven too and from school each day.
READ ALSO:
Mrs Powell finished up her school run on March 16, exactly 30 years on the day she started.
"It was an emotional day, the kids said 'when we get to Miandetta can we have a speech?', so I slowed down and as I started to talk I had to pull up because I couldn't see through the tears," Mrs Powell said.
"I couldn't talk but all I said is 'you've all been wonderful and there's not much I can say'.
"I bubbled all the way home and the only thing I could say to my husband is 'thank you for buying that bus, because I've had a good life'.
"I don't cry normally, I'm a hard old bird, but I just said 'thank you'."
Looking back over the years, Mrs Powell couldn't pick her fondest memory, saying all the kids she had ride on her school Read More – Source
[contf]
[contfnew]
Nyngan Observer
[contfnewc]
[contfnewc]
