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A Tribute to William "Bud" Hussey
William "Bud" Hussey, custodial supervisor at Community Park, died Friday, June 27th after suffering a heart attack at home. He was 58. Bud was held in high esteem by his peers and by the Community Park staff. Bud joined the district in 1989 as a custodian and worked at Littlebrook and Johnson Park before being promoted to supervisor at Community Park. He served in the Army and prior to coming to the district worked as the manager of Varsity Liquors on Nassau Street for over 12 years.
The following are some reflections by Community Park staff:
Donna Heisele:
Bud (or Buddy as some of his friends called him) was not only a colleague to everyone at CP, but also friend. He was one of the most dedicated, hard-working individuals I ever met. Bud took great pride in everything he did--he wanted the best for CP. If a staff member needed something, they didn't have to ask twice. If the school or PTO had an event scheduled, Bud was planning what needed to be done well ahead of the day. He checked with everyone involved to make sure every detail was covered, and it always was. The children at CP adored Bud. They referred to him as "Mr. Bud" and he loved it. One of our former students was so fond of Bud that he wanted to be a head custodian just like Mr. Bud when he grew up. CP will miss Bud. I will miss my good friend Bud.
Joan West:
ITS UNBELIEVABLE TO ME THAT BUD IS GONE. PRINCETON REGIONAL HAS LOST ONE OF ITS MOST DEDICATED, CONSCIENTIOUS AND RELIABLE STAFF MEMBERS. I WAS LUCKY ENOUGH TO WORK WITH BUD FOR THE LAST 19 YEARS. WE HAD THE SAME BIRTHDAY AND THAT DAY WILL BE A LITTLE SAD FOR ME FROM NOW ON..HE WON'T BE THERE ANYMORE WHEN I COME INTO WORK THAT MORNING, WHERE WE WISHED EACH OTHER BIRTHDAY GREETINGS. "ALL RIGHT"..........BUD'S FAVORITE EXPRESSION. DEPENDABILITY............BUD'S MIDDLE NAME. AN AMAZING WORK ETHIC..........BUD'S LEGACY TO US. BUD TOOK SUCH PRIDE IN HIS WORK AND WAS ALWAYS THERE WHEN YOU NEEDED HIM. IF I PASSED HIM IN THE HALL AND ASKED HIM FOR PAPER TOWELS OR SOAP FOR MY ROOM, BY THE TIME I RETURNED, IT WAS ALREADY SITTING ON MY COUNTER. IT
DIDN'T EVEN MATTER IF I TOLD HIM TO CONTINUE WHAT HE WAS DOING AND HELP ME OUT LATER, HE STILL MADE TIME TO HELP ME RIGHT THEN. I WILL FOREVER PICTURE BUD GOING UP AND DOWN THE HALLS CARRYING HIS STICK WITH THE TENNIS BALL, CLEANING THE BLACK SKID MARKS FROM THE FLOORS. SOMETIMES I WOULD HOP ON ONE OF HIS CARTS OR HANDTRUCKS AND HE WOULD GIVE ME A RIDE DOWN THE HALL. I KNOW THAT AS THE DAYS PASS, MORE PICTURES AND STORIES OF BUD WILL COME TO MY MIND. RIGHT NOW, I AM THINKING ABOUT AND REALIZING HOW ALL OF US ASKED HIM FOR SO MUCH AND I DON'T THINK HE EVER ASKED FOR ANYTHING FROM US. WE WERE SO LUCKY TO HAVE HIM. I CAN'T IMAGINE LIFE AT CP WITHOUT HIM.
Linda Carey:
Bud was truly the most upstanding, honest, hard-working person I have ever met. He took such pride in his work and in the way "his" school should look at all times, that his work ethic was a shinning example to all who knew him. For twenty years my conversations with Bud have all been based on his positive outlook, even when his personal life was amiss. He had been through a lot but he never let that get in the way of his professionalism and his love of his job and CP. He knew all the children by name and always had a kind word for them. The kids of CP's Mr. Bud will sorely be missed. It will be impossible to replace Mr. Bud. He truly was one of a kind. He was near and dear to the hearts of everyone at CP. It is with deep regret and tremendous respect that we wish him peace. Our prayers
are with his family.
Donna Wepplo:
Bud was so proud of his position at Community Park School. He wanted our school to sparkle! I think he had a magical cleaning solution that he used to remove marks that his tennis ball missed on the tile flooring.Bud was always willing to help the children and the teachers and gave much more than 100% effort to any task. He was truly appreciative of the thank you notes that the children wrote to him. He saved them forever and I loved to look at them taped to his door as I walked by.
Mary Timberlake:
Bud took care of everything for us, and he took the time to share: info we needed to know, a joke, a frustration, a concern about a student and that affirming smile in passing that said he knew we were working hard, too. He was there for us, and how we will miss him!
Sheila Aguilar
I am still in shock from this horrible news. I was at work early in the morning on Friday June 20th cleaning out my room when I saw Bud. He came in my room and said hello and we began to chat. In our conversation that morning I asked him when he was taking some vacation time off, since I know how hard he works. He told me he would be off the following week (which was last week). We started to chat some more, and the 5th grade moving on ceromony came up. Bud told me that in all the years he has worked at CP he had never ever missed a moving on ceremony. He told me how it important it was to him. This shows me that Bud not only loved our school and his job, but he cared so much about our students too. This is such a loss for all of us at CP. He will be missed.
Lyn Nosker
"Mister Bud" was : indefatigable, conscientious, always helpful, resourceful, quick-moving, funny, a man who expected the most of himself and of others.A few years ago, during a spell of snow and ice which closed school for several days in a row, Bud slept at school a couple nights. It was too risky to drive all the way home, and he wanted to be ready for the next day's shoveling. He later told me that he didn't mind the cold, the hard work, or the loneliness, but the nurse's couch was not very comfortable! Bud thoroughly enjoyed the major cleaning which is done in the summer. I often heard him down the hall singing and chatting and joking with the other custodians as they scrubbed and polished the classrooms to his high standards. He seemed most spirited when organizing the many tasks involved in this
annual job, never complaining that half the school is not air-conditioned. His work ethic was most admirable. Bud was nothing if not organized. He kept us on our toes about writing down school events on the master calendar, for these events often implied some tasks for him. He was totally reliable about tending to the needs of the public at voting times, and of the requirements of all the outside groups who use Community Park. He was known to be at school at 4:00 A.M. on cold mornings when election officials would want the cup of coffee he so generously prepared for them. I was often reminded, when talking to Bud, that he saw Community Park School through his own lens, which is, of course, to be expected. This means that he saw our classrooms as sources of soil and untidiness and broken equipment. His intense focus on our building's needs allowed all of us to focus on our own responsibilities at CP. Although he did not discuss matters of
curruculum, methods of teaching, children's behavior, ISIP's, IEP's, PIP's, or the CST, he was not unaware of the reason for the existence of CP. He enjoyed observing the children duirng lunch sessions, and seemed most relaxed when in their company at that informal time of day. Though not always aware of the grade level of each classroom, he was intuitively respectful of what goes on in our rooms.
The PRS Community extends their condolences to Bud's family and friends on the loss of an exceptional individual. |
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