BC Transit drivers leave lasting positive impression on German students

Many drivers will tell you being courteous and helpful to their customers is “just part of the job”, but for a group of young people coming to live in a distant land, it meant so much more.

David Morrical and his family played host to several teenaged home stay students over a four year period ending in 2018, and most of the time they had a student for an entire year. Not only did hosting these young people enrich the lives of his family, but it also provided a safe, welcoming home for kids living far away from home for the first time.

“The way I see it if you’re living in our house, you’re a part of our family, and I treated them the same way I did my own kids,” said David Morrical. “We always included them in our family activities, whether it was vacations or chores. I really feel like we were helping these kids grow up. It was a really great experience for us.”

Imagine what it would be like if you were dropped in a country where the primary language wasn’t your own. You would not only have to learn new customs and figure out how to get around, but also go to school. And think about doing all that if you were 15 or 16 years old! That’s the reality for home stay students, and under that kind of stress, kindness from strangers holds special meaning. That was definitely the case with some German students who came to stay with the Morrical family.

“By in large, the drivers where they come from are not necessarily the most friendly, and don’t offer advice or support for passengers. Well I’d be on the phone with them and they’d be crying because they took the wrong bus or were going the wrong direction, and I’d tell them the bus driver can be their buddy.”

The students were inevitably shocked and appreciative at how helpful their drivers were. Interacting with Transit Operators might be a common part of our everyday public transit routines, but that’s not necessarily the case everywhere.

The Morricals recently had a return visit from one of the German students they housed, and the kindness of bus drivers came up in conversation. David was surprised by what she said next.

“She told us that she has now taken it upon herself to greet German drivers when she gets on the bus and thanks them when she leaves. She said it’s bewildering to them that a customer would acknowledge them in that way, but she’s going continue to be that little instrument of change back home. So the effects of what drivers here are doing to elicit those responses is now having a positive impact in other places.”

The Morrical family has stayed in close contact with their former house guests, and have even travelled to Europe to visit them and their families. They highly recommend taking part in home stay programs, and BC Transit thanks the family and their students for helping spread transit positivity beyond our borders.