Sonja Bailes
Bossier Schools Public Relations Liaison
What started as any other bus ride home quickly changed course one January afternoon in
Plain Dealing. It was a young girl’s first day to ride Debbie Lockey’s bus. Thankfully, Lockey was
a veteran driver with 35 years’ experience and a lot of first aid training under her seat belt.
“A kindergartener who was sitting at the front started choking,” explained Dr. Anita
Szombathelyi, Assistant Principal at Plain Dealing High. “Mrs. Lockey asked her what was
wrong with her and within seconds she stopped the bus and sprang into action. She pulled the
bus to the side, got out of her seat and started a Heimlich maneuver on the student.”
“The look on her little face, I knew she was choking on something, but in my mind I thought she
got some candy or a sucker and some of it came off, not thinking it was a quarter,” Lockey
recalled. “The way she looked, I could tell something was wrong. After the third or fourth thrust
doing the Heimlich, there it came.”
“She hugged the student and told her ‘you’re okay, you’re okay’ several times to make sure the
student was safe now. Her quick thinking and heroic move saved the life of that student!”
Szombathelyi added.
In her three-plus decades of driving a school bus, Lockey says not once has ever had to use the
Heimlich or any of her first aid training until that day.
“I’m glad I was there and knew what to do,” she said. “Like I told the principal, I was just doing
my job.”
When school administrators watched the bus video afterward, it brought tears to their eyes and
deepened their admiration for Lockey and her quick thinking. It also got their wheels turning
about how to properly recognize her heroism.
“Her commitment to student safety and well-being is unparalleled, but her recent heroic actions
truly set her apart as a deserving recipient of the Gold Star Award,” read a nomination letter
from PDHS Principal Jason Edwards.
So, on a recent Friday, Lockey’s afternoon again changed course, only this time for a much
different reason. Her bus riders lined the hallway, clapping and yelling ‘surprise’ as Lockey
entered the school. The shock on her face was priceless, not understanding what was going on
until Lockey learned she was the recipient of Bossier Schools’ Gold Star award.
Director of Transportation Lt. Col. (Ret.) Dave Hadden pointed out Lockey’s route services the
extreme northeast corner of Bossier Parish that borders the Red River to the west and the
Arkansas line to the north. Luckily, she was in the right place at the right time.
“Working in this area alone presents its own sets of challenges such as bus stops with no lights,
no sidewalks, no road shoulders, tight turn-arounds on gravel and dirt roads, and early morning
pick-ups that begin at 5:50 a.m.” Hadden added, “On this route, as well as most others, drivers
know that they have just mere seconds to resolve emergencies as quickly as possible … I’m
thankful for Ms. Debbie and all of our ‘Guardian Angels on wheels’ that go above and beyond
their traditional duties to ensure the safety of our student riders.”
“I’m just glad everything worked out,” Lockey said. “You learn a lot going to those (first aid)
classes. It’s just good to … people need to realize it could be your child and knowing what to do
might save them.”
Editor’s note: Know someone who works for Bossier Schools that is deserving of recognition for
going above and beyond? Nominate them for the Gold Star award, proudly sponsored for the
12th year by Bossier Federal Credit Union. Visit https://bit.ly/3MOZSRY to tell what sets them
apart and be watching for our next Gold Star surprise.