Almost a million accident free miles

driverawards022: Almost a million accident free miles Sheila Cazares has a resume that looks like it belongs in "The Guinness Book of World Records." Cazares has been a school bus driver with the Kern County Superintendent of Schools (KCSOS) since 1981. She has driven a distance of almost a million miles -- 919,370 -- without an accident. Understandably, Cazares got quite a bit of attention, when KCSOS Transportation Services held its annual Safe Driving Awards banquet on Aug. 21.

First Cazares received the rare 900,000 miles Safe Driving Certificate from California Highway (CHP) School Bus Safety Officer Adam Taylor. She is the first KCSOS driver to have ever logged that many miles without a preventable accident. CHP Safe Driving Certificates are awarded to drivers who have driven at least 10 years or a minimum of 100,000 miles without a preventable accident.

When it came time for KCSOS to hand out its own Safe Driving Pins, Cazares again stepped forward to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with colleagues in bus driving, Pat Jackson and Emily Robinson. All three have driven 20 consecutive years without being involved in an accident that causes damage. Cazares has had one accident. It happened her very first year, in 1981. She has not had one since.

"You don't think about awards or certificates when you are driving," Cazares said. "You think about the children because driving a school bus is all about loving the children, your job and what you are doing behind the wheel. It feels great to get the awards, and I feel proud. But you don't log that many miles without having a good running bus. The guys in Vehicle Maintenance take care of my bus. I love my mechanics."

Twenty years is a long time to go without an accident, but there are three KCSOS school bus drivers who have more accident-free years. Jane Frando, Delores Henson and Julia Hughes joined Transportation Services when it came into existence 21 years ago. They received 21 year KCSOS Safe Driving Pins. Hughes also has logged the second most accident-free miles of all the drivers -- 750,614 -- which meant she also received a 700,000 CHP Safe Driving Certificate.

"I have children of my own that have ridden school buses, and I never once worried about them being transported to and from school," Hughes said. "I know what training it takes to become a bus driver, and I would put my life and those of my family in their hands without worry."

Superintendent of Schools Larry E. Reider, and Assistant Superintendents Christine Frazier and Tom Valos handed out the Safe Driving Pins to 51 drivers whose accident-free years of driving a school bus ranged from one to 21 years.

Cazares is an example of how much concentration it takes. Her current bus route takes her from Bakersfield-to-Taft-to-Derby Acres-to-Lost Hills round trip -- an estimated distance of about 300 miles each school day.

"You have a tough job, and you do a great job bringing our students safely to and from school each day," Reider told the drivers. "I have a special affinity for school bus drivers because I grew up in the country. And if I missed the bus, I had to walk six miles to school."

Others receiving CHP Safe Driving certificates and the miles they logged were: Karen Snyder - 101,036; Terri Gamble- 102,926; Ramona Thomas - 107,347; Trish Weedon - 111,646; Amabeli Zuniga - 112,924; Christine Chenoweth - 113,032; Teresa Clark - 117,089; Ken Hayen - 146,197; Becky Bowers - 225,548; Charlotte Gonzales - 228,929; Virginia Jones - 245,955; and Robyrt Gridiron - 349,396.

A list of KCSOS Safe Driving Pin recipients follows.

SAFE DRIVING PIN AWARDS

1 Year Pin
Louise Burnett
Ty Harris

2 Year Pin
Christine Chenoweth
Vera Fisher
Ken Hayen
Anthony Macias
Terry McCarthy
Karen Snyder
Tracy Vanderlei

3 Year Pin
Teresa Clark
Keisha Dean
Terri Gamble
Melissa Hawley-Davis
Roy Jackson
Stormi Raines
Trish Weedon
John Young
Amabeli Zuniga

4 Year Pin
Robyn Bolin
Elena Carrillo
Melanie Ogle

5 Year Pin
Lacresha Word

6 Year Pin
Shirley Cooper

9 Year Pin
Linda Rodriguez
Ramona Thomas

10 Year Pin
Charlotte Gonzales
Robyrt Gridiron

11 Year Pin
Roseanne Rios

12 Year Pin
Virginia Jones

13 Year Pin
Becky Bowers
JoAnn Mulholland
David Register
Tomi Weller

14 Year Pin
Sandy Barker

15 Year Pin
Myra Payne

16 Year Pin
Jodee Gilbert-Uhlman
Pat Gonzales
Lori Pelster

17 Year Pin
Judy Fike
Dotty Peters

18 Year Pin
Nancy Waldram

19 Year Pin
Julie Beverly
Carrie Boschini
Juanita Meza
Debra Sumlin

20 Year Pin
Sheila Cazares
Pat Jackson
Emily Robinson

21 Year Pin
Jane Frando
Delores Henson
Julia Hughes
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