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When Joanne Rezin was asked to drive a school bus for the Tomah School District 33 years ago, she wasn’t sure if it was something she wanted to do.

After being talked into it by then-transportation director Tom Pederson, she has been driving children to and from school ever since, and she still enjoys it today.

“I was talked into it right away,” Rezin said. “I love driving the bus. I love the kids, and I like to see the change of seasons and houses being built.”

Rezin, 60, parks her bus at her house when she is done dropping students off at their homes every evening. After dropping students off at school in the morning, she parks her bus at Lemonweir Elementary School, where she is a teacher’s aide. The enjoyment she gets from working with children has helped her make driving the bus a part of her life, instead of just a job.

“Since I started, there was never a time I thought that I wouldn’t be driving bus,” Rezin said.

Rezin has had different routes over the years, but not many. She said that she is starting to pick up students on the same farms that she picked their fathers up on once upon a time. She doesn’t mind getting up early, either. She is more worried about being on time.

“You do get up early and do a pre-trip,” Rezin said. “Being on time is very important to me. The kids are waiting for me.”

Weather doesn’t bother Rezin much, either. If it is not a snow day, she trusts the plows that will be on the road even earlier than she is. She also trusts her bus and the mechanics who keep it in check.

“I sleep good at night knowing the plows are on the road before me,” Rezin said. “We have good mechanics keeping the bus in good running order, too. I don’t do it alone.”

In her 33 years on the job, she has kept safety a priority, and it shows. She will admit that there has been a few close calls, but not many. She remembers a few years ago when a dump truck lost its brakes and nearly hit the bus. Rezin did what she had to do, closed the bus door and the dump truck never touched the bus. She also said she could write a book on many good experiences she has had driving the bus. There is always something new going on, and that is part of the reason that Rezin has driven a school bus for so long, and why she plans to keep doing it for a while.

“Every day is something different,” Rezin said. “When you work with children, there is never a dull moment.”