Teamwork Saved Bus Driver’s Life, Inspired Student Project

By MONICA CALZOLARI
OTEGO

Richard Cooley, a bus driver for Unatego High School, almost died on September 12, 2023. He was stung twice by a European hornet, which caused him to go into anaphylactic shock.

Cooley was driving 26 students back from their morning classes at BOCES when a hornet flew in through the bus window and stung him in the back.

Cooley said, “The sting felt like a hot thumb tack or small nail going into my back. It hurt a lot. Ten seconds later, it stung me again.”

Cooley had been stung by bees before. In fact, he was stung a week earlier and did not have an allergic reaction. According to the research Cooley has done since, “getting stung by one of these hornets is the equivalent to being stung 26 times. Since I was stung twice, I had the equivalent of 52 doses of venom in my system,” he explained.

Amanda Smith, one of the school nurses, did some research herself after this happened and found out that the European hornets kill up to 50 people a year.

Smith was the nurse on duty when she received a call from Amber Birdsall, the Unatego Central School bus dispatcher and district treasurer. Cooley radioed Birdsall that he had been stung and needed medical attention. Birdsall then called the nurse’s office and relayed this exact information, which played a crucial role in the treatment of Cooley.

Smith said, “I tell Rich all the time that he saved his own life by being able to relay that he was stung.”

The more information nurses know, the better someone can be helped. Anaphylactic shock presents differently in everyone. If Cooley had not reported being stung and had Birdsall not relayed that exact message to the nurse, Smith may not have had an EpiPen on her when she went to assess the situation.

When Smith arrived at the bus where Cooley was waiting, “He was drenched with sweat, his airways were narrowing and he was unresponsive,” she said.

School Resource Officer Shaun Callahan, Lead Custodian Will Clark, Matt Hafele, the athletic director and security person, and nurse Smith lifted Cooley off the bus and onto the pavement.

Callahan said, “It was a team effort. It went as well as it did because everyone stayed calm and did their part.”

Another school nurse, Kacey Theobald, RN, recalled, “As Cooley gained consciousness, he was unaware of what was going on around him and was very out of it…my first thought was he was having a seizure or just coming out of one.”

Theobald continued, “You can never be prepared enough for this type of situation.”

School Principal Julie Lambiaso said, “We wanted him off that bus and on the sidewalk, just in case CPR needed to be initiated.”

“After the school nurse shot me with the EpiPen and someone called 911, the paramedics gave me two more shots of adrenalin,” Cooley said.

Smith explained, “The epinephrine that the paramedics administered was stronger than the dose in the EpiPen.”

Cooley added, “I am just thankful that good people were around to help me. I was 12 miles away from school when I got stung. I believe in God. He held me. I was lucky.”

“I never would have thought you could die from a bee sting,” he said.

Smith concluded, “Rich put the safety of those kids before his own safety.”

“My job is to protect students and get them to safety,” Cooley replied.

“In an emergency, you never know what the outcome could be. The Unatego team stayed calm, and pulled together to do all that we could to help Rich pull through. I’m so thankful of the outcome of that day and that he’s okay,” Birdsall said.

Five tenth- and eleventh-graders from Unatego High School chose to highlight lessons learned from the bus driver’s near-death experience.

Abbey Bailey, Hailey Barron, Madisyn Birdsall, Avery James, and Quinlan Ranc competed in the Community Foundation of Otsego County’s “Student Voices, Student Choices” challenge earlier this year and won $1,000.00 on November 20, 2023. They are all members of the National Honor Society.

The students dedicated their “Student Voices, Student Choices” presentation to Cooley, and requested money to educate the entire school about anaphylactic shock.

Kim Trask, resource room teacher, and Lexi McHenry, guidance counselor, are the group’s Honor Society advisors.

Trask said, “We are so proud of them for coming up with this topic, researching about anaphylactic shock and EpiPens, and conducting a very emotional interview with the group involved on September 12th, including Rich. This amazing group of students took a near-tragic event that happened in our community, put together a very inspiring presentation, and made a positive impact.”

Student Avery James said, “We thought it would be beneficial to spread the word not only to our school, but to other schools. We wanted to tell this story so that future generations would be aware of how deadly anaphylactic shock can be.”

Anaphylactic shock can also be caused by peanut, milk, and seafood allergies, and certain medicines such as antibiotics.

Hailey Barron explained, “We intend to buy at least one more EpiPen with the $1,000.00 we received.”

Quinlan Ranc said, “EpiPens cost $650.00-$750.00 each without insurance and must be replaced every year.”

Being a bus driver is Cooley’s second career.

He said, “I was a jeweler for 35 years. I retired, got bored and applied to the Unatego school district to be a bus driver. My family owns Cooley’s Jewelry in Sidney, which has been in operation for 135 years, since 1888.”