Bus Company Making It Up To Seymour Kids

CONTRIBUTEDHere’s hoping the second time will be the charm.

After a wayward bus driver cost about 40 Seymour middle schoolers a chance to sing at Radio City Music Hall this month, the company at fault for the snafu promised to make it up to them. It sounds like they have — the company, Peter Pan Bus Lines, has promised to send not only the group originally set to go this Saturday (Dec. 22), but another bus for their parents, too. 

And they’ll be able to sing at Radio City after all.

Chorus teacher Nathaniel Dobas told the students last week. Their reaction? It was the loudest I’ve heard them this year.”

Background

Things went awry the morning of Dec. 8, when the chorus was expecting to ride down to New York, perform at the revered venue before a performance of its annual Christmas Spectacular,” then take in the sights and sounds of the city during the holidays.

But as the arrival time for the bus ticked by on the clock and there was no sight of the vehicle, students and parents started getting concerned.

Even worse — they were calling the driver’s cell phone but not getting an answer. And when they finally did, the driver said he thought he was somewhere near Winsted, which would be about 40 minutes away.

The company sent a replacement” bus, but school officials canceled the trip because it wouldn’t have been able to get the kids down to New York quickly enough.

In the days after the incident, Peter Pan promised to make up for the mistake.

Last week, they made good on that promise.

Makeup Trip

Dobas said the bus company followed through and delivered. Radio City Music Hall was also very understanding, he said.

They were very accommodating,” Dobas said.

And judging from the students’ loudness, the gesture was appreciated.

They were overjoyed,” Dobas said of the group.

The mother of one of the chorus members, Terri Lynn Ferrara, whose post calling attention to the snafu on the Valley Indy’s Facebook page drew dozens of shares and comments, trumpeted the happier news Thursday (Dec. 13).

RADIO CITYTHE SEQUEL!” she wrote. PETER PAN BUS LINES MAKES GOOD ON ITS PROMISE TO MAKE IT RIGHT’!”

Notes of appreciation also turned up on the company’s page.

Quality response Peter Pan to the mix up with Seymour Middle School/Radio City Music Hall trip,” Mort Conlan wrote Friday. Thanks for doing the right thing and turning a negative into a positive. Quality is a characteristic preached by so many companies and so seldom practiced.”

Ferrara said Monday she was relieved to hear the news — and that she wasn’t the only one.

The parents I have talked to seem very pleased with what Peter Pan has done to make up for this,” she said.

Peter Pan is stepping up. We’re really looking forward to it,” Ferrara said, before adding: That bus better be there the night before, sleeping over.”

Another positive: she said after news coverage of the original mixup spread, members of the chorus were invited to perform at a concert in Windsor Locks.

It was last-minute, Ferrara said, but about 15 children were able to make the trip. The star of the show, a Las Vegas entertainer named Jimmy Mazz, gave up the last 10 or so minutes of his performance to allow the Seymour students to sing.

We made a really nice day out of it,” Ferrara said.

Bob Schwarz, a Peter Pan Bus Lines spokesman, said Tuesday that the company appreciates the kind comments made by parents since the company promised the make-up trip. They’ve been very understanding, all things considered, he said.

All’s well that ends well,” Schwarz said. We’re just very, very glad that we made some children happy.”

Keep local reporting alive. Donate.ValleyIndy.org