Most bus drivers operate on strict schedules, but one compassionate transit worker took the time to assist an older blind man navigating a construction site.
Gene Hubbard, a 69-year-old man who lost his sight due to diabetes, has been commuting independently to work in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, for the past 20 years. He is familiar with his route from the bus stop to his workplace, but recent construction at an intersection posed a major challenge. “If I don’t have a regular locating point to start from, I may as well be in the middle of the ocean,” Hubbard explained.
Fortunately, 28-year-old Thaddaus Turner, a driver for the Milwaukee County Transit System, noticed Hubbard’s predicament as he approached the bus stop surrounded by orange cones. Turner parked the bus, disembarked, took Hubbard’s arm, and guided him safely through the road work. An oncoming car stopped traffic to allow them to cross, and the driver, Sydney Kazmierczak, captured the moment on her phone to share Turner’s act of kindness with news outlets. “I feel like I was placed there at the right time to capture this moment!!” Kazmierczak stated. “I am so happy I quick pulled out my phone to snap the picture! Thad deserves to be recognized!!”
Turner, however, remains modest about the incident, attributing the same level of kindness to his fellow bus drivers. “The route was barricaded, it was rough for me as a driver; I can only imagine how rough it was for him,” he told CNN.
The Universe positions us in particular places and moments to either receive or extend the gifts of Nature’s generosity and compassion. Let us embrace this responsibility when it arises, rather than shy away from it.