Many stories of courageous actions taken during the shooting at Santa Monica College have come to light since the tragedy unfolded on June 7. One untold story of heroism was led by Bus Drivers, Custodians, Cafeteria Workers, and other SEIU Local 99 members at Santa Monica Malibu Unified schools who say they were “just doing their job” when they calmly ensured the safety of hundreds of young children in the schools neighboring the college.
As news of the tragedy spread, it became clear to the school district that not all children were safe inside “locked down” campuses. Some students were attending end-of-year events at area parks. Preschool classes were held at the Boys and Girls Club building next to John Adams Middle School, directly in front of Santa Monica College. These children were very vulnerable. They needed to be transported to safety and the call went out to the School Bus Drivers.
“The reality sets in later about what a big responsibility that was,” said bus driver Salvador Brito. “I had heard the news before I got back to the transportation yard. So when we were sent back out to pick up the preschoolers, I knew why. We tried to make it fun for the children so they wouldn’t be afraid. I joked that we were going on a field trip. There was definitely a sense of urgency, but we had to keep cool.”
21-year District veteran Latrice Elie said, “Our transportation director had to guide me to the kids by radio because the incident triggered a lot of street closures. It felt good to know we were getting the kids to safety. My own kids used to ride on the school buses. So to me, I feel like all the children on the bus are my kids. In an emergency, you just get together as a group and do what you have to do.”
That seemed to be the theme of the day. Cafeteria workers prepared snacks for children on “lock down” and custodians kept watch over the elementary school playgrounds to make sure no child was in danger. “There was no room for doubting or having fear or anything,” said Bus Driver Salvador Brito. “You just have to do what you have to do.”
The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor published this story in their On the Move newsletter.
