my job
By Laura French • jobslink@startribune.com
Bill Drigans is on his fourth career — not counting his Marine Corps service during the Korean War. A highlight of his first career, as a project manager for Control Data, was installing two computers in the Presidential Palace in Mexico City. In his second career, Drigans sold children's clothing over a five-state area.
After retiring from sales, he asked himself what he wanted to do next. As a high school athlete, Drigans had spent a lot of time on school buses. "I always talked to the bus driver," he recalled.
He applied to Voigt's in his home town of Fridley and began a third career as a driver.
"I drove the same area for 18 years. The kids grew up with me. I've been to lots of parties. I've received wedding invitations from couples who rode my bus together. The neighbors recognize me," he said.
Drigans' passengers ranged from kindergarten to high school. "You see changes as they grow up. The little ones' attention span is less. You have to settle them down more often," he said. Telling stories that ended with "to be continued" was one technique Drigans used. Kids would take the bus home instead of having their moms pick them up, just so they could hear the ending.
In addition to the school routes, Drigans drove casino runs and over-the-road charters as far away as St. Louis. He also drove "a lot of sports charters." When he drove football and basketball teams, he'd also act as volunteer scorekeeper and statistician, sitting on the bench with the team.
Drigans gave nicknames to his young passengers — Cinderella, Snow White, Lone Ranger. "Once I was driving a substitute route, and three eighth-grade girls said, 'Don't you remember us? We're the Dixie Chicks.' I called them that because they always rode the bus together, and eight years later they were still getting off at the same stop," he said.
