AGAWAM – Kindergarten is a major life step for young children – and riding the school bus for the first time is no different. To help prepare students in the area, the General Federation of Women’s Clubs of Massachusetts Agawam Junior Women’s Club hosted its 45th annual bus safety event.

On August 29, 81 incoming kindergarteners, and their caregivers, flooded the Agawam Public Library for the women’s club’s First Time Bus Rider Event, featuring the Safety Bug. The students were shown safe bus riding techniques while their caregivers and parents were given helpful tips about the first day of school. Eight volunteers were on hand, accompanied by Agawam Police Sgt. Anthony Grasso.

“It’s important for both kids and adults – it’s great for the parents because they get to see their kids get on and off the bus and know that they’re capable, and it’s great for the kids to have a tiny bit of exposure,” said GFWC Agawam Junior Women’s Club Corresponding Secretary Christina Beauchemin. “It’s a positive experience for everyone.”

Some of the rules the volunteers taught included:

• The bus driver is the boss

• Keep arms, legs and head inside the bus

• Stay five steps back from the curb

• No running

• Hold the handrail

• Always wait for the bus driver to say it’s safe to get on the bus or to cross the street

• Look both ways before crossing the street

• No pushing or shoving

• Sit with your hands in your lap

• No eating or chewing gum on the bus

For any anxious parents, a 2012 study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration found that school buses are about seven times safer for student transportation than cars or light trucks.    

The students were then taken on a short, five-minute bus ride around the parking lot to test out their knowledge and get a feel for the physical surroundings of the bus, while the parents watched. The Lower Pioneer Valley Educational Collaborative donated the bus.

Overall, Beauchemin said the event was well received.

“There were no tears – they loved it. We usually have three bus rides – one load, a second load and a third load for the kids who weren’t able to get on the bus by themselves,” she said. “We make a third trip for the moms and dads to go on the bus with the kids who weren’t able to do it alone, and we didn’t have to do that this year.”

The event was free and takes place before the start of every school year. The women’s club accepts registration online through the Agawam Public Library website.

The GFWC Agawam Junior Women’s Club is a community service organization committed to the betterment of the community through special project supporting the arts, natural resources, education, healthy lifestyles, international causes and civic involvement.

“Our mission is to enrich the quality of life in our community through a variety of educational, social and cultural projects and programs,” added Beauchemin.  “For education, we do the First Time Bus Riders event and a town-wide spelling bee. For social, we have ice cream socials at the Holyoke Soldier’s Home and we serve food to the homeless. We have a bunch of other tiny programs here and there.”

The Agawam Juniors are always looking for new members; for more information contact 335-4851.