Jerry Martin, Jr
Copperas Cove, TX — Jerry Martin Jr., a local bus driver for a school district in Texas, is being applauded for mowing the tall grass and weeds at his young passengers’ bus stop. He says he did it so that the students he pick up won’t have to stand in tall grass while waiting for the bus.Martin apparently noticed during his route one day that the students are waiting in the grass as high as their waists at one of his bus stops in a vacant house’s yard. After finishing the route, he reportedly went home just to get his lawnmower and returned to the bus stop to cut the grass.
But it was not the first time he has done that.
“Oh, I’ve done it several times,” Martin told KWTX. “But this time someone just took a picture.”
The picture was posted by Copperas Cove ISD on their Facebook page. They also said that the bus stop near Williams Ledger Elementary School was located at a property that had been vacant for years, the reason why the lawn was unkempt.
The officials are praising Martin who did not wait for anyone else to do it and went above and beyond his responsibilities as a bus driver because he cares for his community.
“It was about knee high and I’m 6 feet tall,” Martin said. “It wasn’t just grass. The weeds had popped up all over the place and they had like sticker things on there and I didn’t want the kids worried about getting bitten by a chigger.”
The post has received a lot of positive comments, including those from Martin’s former passengers who agreed that he has always been good-natured.
“He was my bus driver way back when. He truly is an amazing person,” one former student wrote.
“Mr. Martin was my elementary bus driver and he would always have fresh fruit for us to take home and was my favorite bus driver ever. I’m so happy he’s still shedding some positive lights on students today,” another one said.
Martin, who has been a veteran bus driver who has worked in the district for 17 years, does not plan to stop doing what he does anytime soon.
“I noticed some high grass at another stop. I planned to do that today, but I’ve got an appointment but I’ll get to it. For my kids, I’ll just do what I have to do,” Martin said.