Tom Ochs was an asset as a transportation specialist in the Nazareth area

Few topics strike closer to the hearts of parents than school transportation. Where is my child’s bus stop? Why can’t it be at the corner closer to my home? How come the duration of the trip can’t be shorter?

Go to board meetings at the beginning of the school year and these and other issues are raised by parents concerned about their children getting to and from school.
View full sizeTom Ochs
In the Nazareth Area School District, the task of moving children back and forth from school falls to Jennings Transportation Corp. Anyone who has ever dealt with Jennings knows Tom Ochs and his wife, Jan. Thomas R. Ochs, 54, of Bushkill Township, died Saturday after a battle with pancreatic cancer.

I didn’t know Tom Ochs personally, but like so many other parents of school-age children in the Nazareth area, I knew him and his wife as the people charged with getting my kids to and from school.

In most cases, the trips to school are standard and formulated. A child waits at the corner, gets on the bus and arrives at school. Later in the day, the process works in reverse. Amazingly, it almost always happens without major incident.

In some cases, special circumstances require detailed planning to get children to schools that are not part of regular trips. State law requires districts to transport students to any school within 10 miles of its boundaries. It is an important and significant service provided to taxpayers, and creates a serious challenge for those in charge of transportation.

Having been a parent in this situation, I can tell you it’s not easy. I can also tell you that Tom and his wife were extraordinary in making it happen.

Parents and children who have benefited from this well-run business can be grateful for Tom Ochs.

Source: Express Times