“Following in my footsteps”: Three generations of operators drive for Kitsap Transit
Left to right: Damien Sabado, Jeanette Zaleski and Val Quill.
Jeanette Zaleski was one of the first drivers hired to work for Kitsap Transit when the agency was formed in 1982. A 15-year veteran school bus driver, Jeanette saw an ad for the fledgling transit operation and decided to try her hand at it.
She didn’t know that her decision would start a family tradition that’s still going strong 40 years later.
“My kids were the first ones on the bus that I drove and the last ones off the bus,” Jeanette said.
One of those kids was Val Quill, who remembers riding her mom’s bus as it traversed Port Orchard. Val didn’t want to follow in her mother’s footsteps initially, but Jeanette insisted she fill out an application – thirty-seven years later, Val is now Kitsap Transit’s longest-tenured driver.
“I just thought ‘Oh, I’ll go ride with Mom and see how the routes go,’” Val said. “Obviously I didn’t learn the route since I got lost when I drove it!”
Over the years, Val has won numerous Driver of the Month and Driver of the Year awards, and this year was recognized by the National Safety Council with the Joseph M. Kaplan Safe Driver of the Year for the Pacific Region. When she started working for Kitsap Transit, her son Damien was only two years old.
“We were on the bus a lot with Mom, and then Damien was on my bus,” Quill said.
Damien Sabado became the third generation of his family to drive for Kitsap Transit when he started as an ACCESS operator in 2011.
“I didn’t mind driving – I always loved driving my personal vehicle,” Damien said. “I figured, why not get paid to drive?”
Working for Kitsap Transit was a big jump in pay for Val when she started in 1985 – her previous job driving private ambulances only paid a few dollars an hour. A six or eight-hour shift driving a bus resulted in much higher take-home pay.
Val was able to buy a house and raise Damien by herself on a Kitsap Transit salary, and the flexible shifts allowed her to work while he was at school.
“There’s benefits here, I didn’t have benefits there,” Val said. “(We get) medical, dental and retirement here, and my other job didn't have any of that.”
As Val grew up riding on Jeanette’s buses, Damien grew up riding on Val’s. He remembers attending Bus Roadeos – annual competitions where operators display their driving skills on a closed course – and riding with Val while she drove her routes.
Damien opted to drive for ACCESS, which offered more freedom in route choices. ACCESS operators serve Kitsap’s elderly and disabled community, transporting them to and from home, medical appointments, grocery stores and other essential locations. Damien enjoys that freedom, as well as getting to know his regular passengers.
“For me, it's just pretty much helping the community,” Damien said. “It doesn't feel like you're doing that much, because you're just driving the bus and you're picking up people and taking them where they need to go. But sometimes that's their only transportation and they don't have anybody else to help them out. Getting them to where they need to go and being on-time for their appointments, I mean, you're doing a lot for them and then going home feeling good about it at the end.”
Jeanette was forced to retire from Kitsap Transit after breaking both of her ankles in a boating accident. But she still looks back fondly on her time as a bus driver, especially the many interesting people she met while on the job.
“You get to thinking of them as family,” Jeanette said.
Val Quill, left, and her son Damien Sabado.
While Val and Jeanette never worked together, Val and Damien have been working together for more than a decade. Most mornings, Val gets to work early and has breakfast with fellow operators. When Damien gets to work, Val makes sure everyone else knows he’s there.
“She announces it every time I walk through in the morning,” Damien laughed. “She’s sitting at the driver’s table while I’m trying to get to my bus. ‘There’s Damien!’”
“I think that’s great; I get to see my son every morning,” Val said.
Driving for Kitsap Transit allowed Jeanette, Val and Damien to save for retirement and build up vacation days. Val and Jeanette take frequent cruises together to see the world.
“It's definitely worth it,” Damien said. “It’s a pretty good, easy job for Kitsap County, for what’s out here. It’s decent pay and a good, fair job. They take care of you.”
Come work for us!
Interested in joining our team? Kitsap Transit offers competitive wages and excellent benefits, including:
$7,000 hiring incentive paid in three installments upon meeting milestones
Paid training, including CDL testing and certification
Health, dental and vision insurance with dependent coverage
Pension through the Public Employees Retirement System
Nine paid holidays and two paid floating holidays
Generous paid leave
Free transit passes for all Kitsap Transit services
Visit kitsaptransit.com/drive for more information.