Orin Daniels – the driver with the golden heart
DPI, Guyana, Friday, March 15, 2019
The David ‘G’ School Bus driver, who became an overnight internet sensation, said his love for children and education is the driving force behind his continuous acts of kindness.
He came from humble beginnings and knows about spending out his bus fare as a school child and begging a “drop” to get home.
He also understands the financial struggles parents endure trying to send their children to school each day.
By now, Orin Daniels has become a name synonymous with kindness.
Facebook lit up on Thursday, after a post of him giving money to four school children went viral. It was just about $400 dollars, but he has been doing this for as long as he has been driving the Number 21 David ‘G’ School Bus.
“Yesterday [Thursday], I decided that I didn’t want these children to go back home. I didn’t know if they had any money, or if their parents were equipped to do it for them, so I decided to go into my pocket and help them with bus fare to go to school.”
The Department of Public Information (DPI) hitched a ride in the school bus on Friday afternoon. Our ride took us along the South Ruimveldt and Guyhock routes. The children were cheerful and welcoming. It was clear that “Mr. Daniels” as he is referred to, is loved and respected by the primary and secondary school pupils, many of which he knows by name and he loves them all the same.
“I have never stayed home a day from this work. I make it my duty, if the bus has a little problem and we can’t pick them up on time, I usually catch the bus myself and go into an area and tell the children the bus wouldn’t be coming. Whatever money I have, I give who I can give so that they can go to school. It is the most painful thing for me to be at home and know that the kids are depending on me because they depend heavily on me, they look forward to this bus,” he said.
Since 2017, Daniels has been sitting behind the wheels of the bus. The free bus service takes more than 30 children per trip. In times when there is not enough space, Daniels said he dives into his pocket.
As a father and grandfather, Daniels could not contain his gratitude for the service of the David ‘G’ School Buses. It helps in unimaginable ways, he told DPI.
“In my heart, I believe that this is one of the greatest things the President could have ever come with and I am happy for him, happy for the system and I pray that the system continues.”
Orin Daniels does not believe he is a superhero. What he believes is that he can make a difference, one child at a time.
Alexis Rodney
Images: Ameer Sattaur