It is 7:55 a.m. and John Maceli has arrived at his first of 10 stops. He is wide awake and full of energy as he greets his first passenger at her door. As he follows behind her wheelchair, he makes sure she isn’t straying from the path to the bus. He helps her on the lift and into the bus. After securing the chair in place and  blasting the heat to fight the freezing air now lingering in the bus, he starts on to his next stop.

“I like to drive, but sitting behind the wheel for five hours isn’t the idea of fun for me – it’s the people that I enjoy,” he said.  

Maceli, associate professor of mathematics at Ithaca College, volunteers his free time to Gadabout Transportation Service, a nonprofit organization for Tompkins County residents who are 60 or over or disabled — then there is no age requirement. The bus service runs from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, and a one-way ticket costs $2. Maceli said the Gadabout has about 300 one-way riders in one day.

Once a week before his classes Maceli wakes up around 6 a.m. with his breakfast — a banana — in hand and begins his route that day, which could mean driving anywhere in Tompkins County.

Maceli, who has lived in the Ithaca area for 45 years and worked at the college since 1969, began driving for Gadabout in 2000 because he said he wanted to give back to the community.

“It was being able to help the community,” he said. “[It was] something that sounded interesting.”

Steve Hilbert, professor of mathematics, has known Maceli since they attended graduate school at Cornell University in 1968. He said Maceli has always been social.

“He is a very friendly person,” he said. “There are people that live in Ithaca for 20 years that only know the people they work with. He knew lots of people before he started working for Gadabout.”

During the academic year, Maceli drives the bus once a week and drives two days a week during the summer.

When he is done with his route for the day, Maceli goes to the college and teaches one of three classes that he has this semester.

“I set up my schedule so that I have one morning free,” he said.

At the college, Hilbert said Maceli is equally dedicated to his students.

“I have always thought that he is a really good adviser,” he said. “He knows about the students and what they should really be doing. And he has a real interest in what they do in addition to the classes they take.”

About three years ago, Maceli joined the board of directors at Gadabout to represent the volunteer drivers. Judy Willis, executive director of Gadabout, said he is a good spokesman for the volunteer drivers.

“Being a teacher is a good perspective to come from,” she said. “He is able to relate to the people.”

Willis said having volunteers has saved the organization more than $100,000 a year.

“They make it possible for us to provide more service and keep the costs of providing that service low enough that it can be afforded by people with a limited income,” she said.

Gadabout rider Margaret DeGraff takes the bus to get dialysis Monday, Wednesday and Friday. She said she likes the convenience of the service since she no longer has a car.

“I use to drive, so sometimes I take the bus for a scenic ride,” she said. “I have been to Enfield, Lansing and up to Cornell.”

Maceli said he enjoys meeting new riders but also has his regulars who he drives almost every time he is on duty.

The fourth stop is Dan Williams, six-year rider of Gadabout and an adaptive technology specialist for Support Services Students with Disabilities for the college.

“Did you watch the Super Bowl?” Maceli said to him.

“Yes, I did, along with the hundred million other people,” Williams said.

Williams said he enjoys the volunteers and the service.

“It is a great service,” he said. “It is really great if I have to go home early. I can call them up, and they are really good about trying to fit me in.”

Maceli’s wife, Alison Maceli said the bus service has been good for her husband.  

“The drivers benefit just as much as the recipients,” she said. “It has given him a much more realistic sense of what aging can mean. It is a good match for [Maceli] because he is outgoing [and] gregarious. That is the perfect combo to interact with people.”

Willis said Maceli is a dedicated driver who cares about his riders.  

“He knows that they are just people who have a disability,” she said. “They are people just like everybody else. He likes to find out about people, which is what being a driver involves.”