Beyond Bus Driving: Richard Kase

A third grader sits in the middle seats, almost completely in the aisle, laughing and creating memories that soon will solidify into a cherished friendship. A mother walks her baby onto the bus for her first first day of school, trusting that on the other end of the bus ride will be a journey like none other. Teammates sit in silence, but totally bonded by the tacit understanding that even though they just lost the championship game, they would not be the same without everyone pulling together.

And who is there through all these defining moments? The loyal bus driver. A figure often over-looked, bus drivers all play a vital role in in the daily life of a school community. Especially when that bus driver is Richard Kase.

Richard has been the bus driver that every sport team fights over for years. In fact, Richard has been driving busses for Weston since 1972! Richard, "a boy raised on a dairy farm and up at 6 a.m.," worked two jobs. Going to work with a computer company at 9 p.m., he filled the middle time driving school busses "to put [his] kids through college."

Richard is so much more than a bus driver, however. Personally, being a three-season athlete, I have seen first-hand how much Richard loves watching the high school sport games. He is so supportive and knows everyone by their first name. And trust me! He's not afraid to yell out your name if you aren't hustling enough — a coaching bus driver is a special rarity!

Just to show how much Richard cares about the student athletes here, take a look at last winter when Richard "took a leave of absence to try retirement," and came right back full swing because, as he shares; "I certainly missed all of you guys." And we missed him too!

While he was down in Jenson Beach, Fla., Richard couldn't stay away from supporting youth athletics. As I have been told, Richard made a point to go to the high school games of students down in Florida, to support them and cheer on these girls and boys who he had never met! That's dedication, and very sweet of Richard to do.

Here in Weston, "I enjoy children and enjoy going to all of the sporting events…Keeps you young, ya know?" jokes Richard. He has two kids of his own, a boy and a girl, who he supported and spectated in a different way, watching their efforts in the Marching Band.

When he’s not busing around Weston students or spectating various sport games, Richard works on his large Holliston farm.  “I used to raise beef cows,” comments Kase, “but now I’m a gentleman farmer, just maintaining the hayfields.”

I loved whenever I got onto the bus and was greeted by Richard’s warm smile. I will never forget how he always addressed me as “Madam President,” and then proceeded to check in just to see how things were going in my life. Richard is such a kind and generous soul, and I will miss having him as my bus driver next year.

One this is for certain though, I will always see him at games, cheering on the Weston Wildcats to victory! When I asked him what his favorite sport to watch was, he had to say New England Patriots. When I asked him specifically for Weston, he replied, “I’m not going to pick one high school team as I enjoy them all!”