Left to right: Director Larry Bird, Alternate-Director Elaine Villareal, Vice-Chair Joy Jeannette, Chair Curt Emick, Ramon Armenta, Monica Perez, Jonathan McDowell, Director James Noble, Alternate-Director Kim Mesen, and Director Liz Becerra.

At the July 2021 Meeting of the Board of Directors, three outstanding Victor Valley Transit employees were recognized for service above and beyond to help both passengers and members of our community.

Monica Perez

On Monday, June 28th, a passenger missed her bus connection at the Barstow City Hall, and after two hours, due to the extreme temperatures, she began to dehydrate. She then noticed a distinctive jacket and wanted to verify that she was at the correct location to return to her home and approached VVTA Supervisor Monica Perez. The passenger shared that Mrs. Perez immediately noticed her dire condition and drove her to her residence at the Barstow Veterans Home, which saved her from an Emergency Room visit or worse. Mrs. Perez’s compassion and desire to assist a passenger above and beyond the call of duty intersected into what could have turned into a tragic event. 

Left to right: VVTA Operator Ramon Armenta, Sean Zullo and VVTA Operations Manager Jonathan McDowell

Ramon Armenta & Jonathan McDowell

On July 2nd, after making a bank withdrawal, High Desert resident Sean Zullo accidentally dropped his wallet on Main Street with cash inside and had lost all hopes of recovering his belongings. However, during this time, VVTA Bus Operator Ramon Armenta happened upon the wallet fully intact and turned it into the Operations Manager Jonathan McDowell. Mr. McDowell then drove to the address listed on the identification and successfully return the wallet to its rightful owner. Mr. Zullo has expressed time after time his heartfelt gratitude for both Mr. Armenta and Mr. McDowell for their honesty, time, and effort. 

VVTA thanks Mrs. Monica Perez, Mr. Ramon Armenta, and Mr. Jonathan McDowell for their outstanding leadership and for exceeding expectations.