Stewards of Their Communities Meet the School Transportation News 2023 Garage Stars
Written by Taylor Ekbatani |
taylor@stnonline.com T
echnicians can fly under the radar when it comes to the face of transportation depart- ments. Yet these employees are
the ones responsible for ensuring that the school buses on the road are of the highest safest standards. They ensure inspections pass with flying colors and that buses aren’t sitting too long await- ing parts. Plus, as alternative fuel and energy buses (not to mention technol- ogy advancements) come into the mix, they are responsible for relearning and retraining to ensure buses remain the safest possible way to transport students to and from school. With over 120 nominations, School
Transportation News Technical Editor Robert Pudlewski’s 10-point criteria narrowed the list to the Top 10 Garage Stars that are featured in this month’s issue. Many of this year’s finalists are also very involved in their community, whether that be via the Boy Scouts or through volunteer work as a firefighter or construction worker. Many entered the industry directly after college or a trade school and haven’t looked back. Sure, there are some challenges with the supply chain disruptions, but these mechanics are trusted to get the job done and love doing it. One in particular, cover subject Heather
Schnitker-Blume of contractor Peter- mann Bus, is empowered to be a woman in a historically male-dominated field. Especially since working in a shop is something she’s grown up being accus- tomed to.
30 School Transportation News • AUGUST 2023
Heather Schnitker-Blume Mechanic II
Talawanda School District, Ohio – Petermann Bus Number of Vehicles Maintained: 41 school buses, 1 company vehicle
Number of Maintenance Staff: 2 mechanics
Heather Schnitker-Blume is de- scribed in her nomination as “tiny but mighty,” by Mindy Hahn, a dispatcher at Ohio’s Talwanda School District. Schnitker-Blume grew up working on cars and trucks in her family’s business, S&S Auto Repair and Towing started by her parents in 1980. She shared that her “babysitter” was watching her dad rebuild cars. “My teens and early adulthood were spent in the shop or our family barn, where something was constantly being worked on,” she recalled. “Having this as a background has helped me in under- standing how to be a better mechanic. My husband being in the military [Jim Blume is currently deployed] and our
children have been super supportive of my move into the tech position.” Additionally, Schnitker-Blume grew up doing rodeo and trick riding. Horses continue to be one of her current hob- bies, along with her family, kids and their hockey and baseball teams, as well as camping. Schnitker-Blume said its empowering
to excel in a predominantly male-dom- inated field. “She does not allow the typical stereotype to bother her,” Hahn followed up in an email to STN. “Growing up it was the norm to be in the garage and working on whatever needed to be worked on.” Schnitker-Blume started her career with Petermann Bus, a subsidiary of
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