Before you read this story about a very, very kind bus driver, here’s a warning. Grab your tissue and make sure you have your kids within hugging distance.
“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, “Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.” – Fred Rogers
The Kind Bus Driver We Want to Hug
A sweet 11-year-old girl named Isabella Pieri lost her mom when she was 9. It was an awful time during which Isabella’s dad was struggling with the loss of his wife, and of all the things she did for the family.
One of those things was to take care of their daughter’s hair. He was out of his element and seemed to be making things worse. His daughter would cry when he’d accidentally pull her hair.
“I originally just gave her a crew cut because I didn’t know how, and it was all tangled and I couldn’t get it out for anything,” he told the local news station. “She’d get mad at me for pulling her hair. I didn’t know how to do it.”
When Isabella’s hair began to grow back, she started pulling it up into a ponytail. One day, her dad said, she came home with a different style than her usual ponytail. Her hair “looked beautiful,” he said.
Turns out a very kind bus driver was behind it.
Tracy Dean is Isabella’s bus driver and apparently she has a heart as big as…well…a bus! When Isabella mustered the courage to ask Tracy for help with her hair, everything changed.
“I can tell she was struggling with her hair,” Tracy told ABC News. “We usually do two French braids first and once in a while she just wants one braid. I also taught her how to brush her hair. She’d get on the bus and she’d say, ‘I brushed my hair. Does it look good?’ “I’ll say, ‘You did awesome.'”
The best news yet.
Isabella’s self-confidence is way up, says her Dad, “which is what I’ve been intending.” So glad to hear this. What an incredible, much-needed boost for this sweet little girl.
After losing her mother at nine years old, Isabella Pieri learned to get ready on her own, but had a hard time with her hair— bus driver Tracy Dean’s simple act of kindness gave Pieri new confidence. @LesterHoltNBC has the story. pic.twitter.com/FhuUwuYsHs
— NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt (@NBCNightlyNews) April 21, 2018
We can all do at least one kind thing each day.
Tracy has made a big difference in the life of a little girl without a mom. It didn’t cost any money and took nothing away from her, but the impact will go on and on.
What can each of us do to impact a child’s life in a positive way? This story is a good reminder for all of us to take a look at ourselves and see if there is more we can do for those around us. Thank you for the lesson, Tracy.
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