Beloved Fair Lawn Bus Driver Dies Of Coronavirus

FAIR LAWN, NJ — A Fair Lawn bus driver known for his heroic actions in October 2019 is being mourned by his community Thursday after dying from complications of the new coronavirus.

According to a release from the school, Gerry Genuino began working for Fair Lawn in 2001 as a custodian at Warren Point Elementary School.

"Our hearts go out to the students, families and staff members who knew Gerry," Fair Lawn Public Schools said in a statement. "His love for Fair Lawn and our students made such an impact and was so great that he will be deeply missed. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his loved ones, and to his colleagues as we grieve his loss and remember a life well-lived."

The school honored Genuino's life Tuesday at Fair Lawn's Building and Grounds department, where he went each day to pick up and drop off his bus.

In the memorial ceremony, Boy Scout Troop 60 and Crew 53 gathered alongside parents, colleagues and police to pay respects. Seventh-grader William Hansen, of Troop 60, performed "Taps" on his trumpet.

“I am just heartbroken,” Lori Rocconova, Fair Lawn transportation director, said in a statement. “Our department will never be the same. He was a kind-hearted man, so humble and never asked for anything in return.”

In a letter to the Fair Lawn School community, Superintendent Nicholas Norcia highlighted Genuino's actions in October 2019, when the bus driver put out a fire on Route 208.

"As he was driving a group of students back to school from a field trip, Gerry extinguished a fire that broke out in the back of a truck bed," Norcia wrote. "In true Gerry style, he jumped back in the bus — even before police arrived on the scene — to get the students back to school safely and on time."

The school is working to provide counseling services for anyone who wishes to speak with a mental health professional. The school will provide mental health agency phone numbers, virtual counseling and additional resources upon request.

"Our thoughts to out to his family, especially his wife and two daughters," Norcia wrote. "Gerry will be in all of our memories for a long time, and when we resume normal activities, we will honor his memories."