Larry Farrish Jr., a beloved school bus driver, once again charmed the Louisville community and online users with his kind deed for a little boy. Upon observing Levi’s unhappiness, a little child he frequently picks up on his way, Farrish Jr. decided to interact with him.
He told Today, “Normally when I pull up, he’s standing there waiting for me with a big smile, but on this day, he was sitting on the ground with a jacket over his head. I asked him, ‘Hey buddy, what’s going on? What’s wrong?’”
The 35-year-old, whom students love to call Mr. Larry, sat in silence as the first-grader at Engelhard Elementary School cried as he revealed that he was going to be without pajamas for Pajama Day.
Then Farrish Jr. shut the doors and observed Levi slide into a seat far from his friends. Speaking to the publication, he expressed his sorrow at the boy’s experience and his resolve to take action.
Farrish Jr. stopped at a Family Dollar to buy two pairs of pajamas for Levi after completing his morning routes.
Farrish Jr. told WEAU, “And I said, ‘Well, this morning, you were crying, and I felt it. So, I want your day to be a little bit better.’ And I asked him, ‘Would you try the pajamas on when you get to class and have a great day?’”
Levi recalled being completely taken aback when he left his classroom and discovered his bus driver standing in the hallway holding pajamas. His teary eyes brightened into smiles.
In a news release, the 6-year-old reminisced his experience with the bus driver, saying, “I can tell Mr. Larry is nice and his heart is filled with joy. When he got me the pajamas, I did a happy cry.”
Meanwhile, Farrish Jr., a former correctional officer and truck driver, feels he’s discovered his calling.
“I’ve been driving buses for seven years. It’s my passion because I get to build bonds with the children,” he expressed to Today. “I truly love every minute of it.”
He also told WEAU, “A lot of time, we’re the first person after their parents leave that they see, and we’re the last person they see before they go home. We can make a big difference in a child’s life just by saying good morning.”
Farrish Jr. said he received multiple “touching” messages from the community when Jefferson County Public Schools published what happened on social media. He mentioned that other people have contacted him to tell him about the impact he has made on their own children’s lives.
The bus driver said, “For people to actually be able to find me and reach out on behalf of such a small gesture, it made me cry. It feels good knowing I made an impact on a child’s life.”
Last October, a 7-year-old boy in Dallas praised his bus driver as a “hero” for saving his life after he swallowed a quarter. The boy, named Preston, was joking with friends shortly before bus surveillance footage captured the moment when he ingested an object.
