I was dreading the trip. Being a chaperone for 44 high schoolers on a bus to La Mirada in Friday night traffic. Three families had paid for a bus to get student fans to the game but the school required two adult chaperones, and if they didn’t step up, there would be no bus ride.

As a parent of one of the players I knew it was something I must do, but it was not something I was looked forward to. At all. And getting a second chaperone was like “pulling teeth without novocain”, as my mom used to say. But another was chaperone was found, but as I drove onto campus I didn’t yet know who my “partner” would be.

From the minute I parked my car by the flagpole my spirits lifted and my attitude changed. The big Santa Barbara Airbus sat there, door open, engine purring, the ASB administrator checking kids off as they loaded the bus. And here I was, making it possible for each of them to travel on a rooter bus to cheer for their school’s boys basketball team in the semi-final game of CIF. A surge of pride swelled within me.

I realized right away that this was something special. These were the first 44 students who got their acts together by picking up permission slips, getting them signed, and turning them in on time. These kids wanted to be on this bus. For some of them this event might be the highlight of their weekend, and I was genuinely happy for them.

My mood had turned around in the blink of an eye. And it got even better when English teacher Jen Slemp approached the bus. I hadn’t met her before. With a beaming smile she shook my hand and told me how much she was looking forward to the trip. As we boarded the bus she greeted the students she had taught and welcomed those she had not. She also  made it clear that we were in charge. Within 15 seconds I could see what a perfect high school teacher she must be. Students know she cares, but they know she means business. Mix that in with her sense of humor and you have some pretty lucky students.

Only once did Ms. Slemp ask the students to turn some music down due to inappropriate lyrics. Other than that the kids were respectful and well-behaved. I talked on the microphone a couple of times reminding them to throw out their trash and to continue to be good representatives of Santa Barbara High School for the duration of the trip, but it might not have been necessary. Each and every student thanked us over and over again, cheered appropriately during the game, returned to the bus on time, and helped us with clean-up upon our return.

It was a wonderful experience, and one I may have the pleasure of repeating next weekend, for the boys won their game and are now advancing to the CIF Southern Section 3A Final at the Honda Center (aka the Duck Pond) in Anaheim this Saturday, March 5th!