Family, friends and coworkers gathered Monday to remember the Valley Metro bus driver who was serving the locals for nearly 50 years

On Monday, Jonathan Keith Wright’s family, friends, and coworkers got together to remember him. He was a Valley Metro bus driver for almost 50 years, and his passengers loved him and thought he was funny.

Wright, who was 70, died on February 9 after a short illness. During the funeral on Monday, a Valley Metro bus waited outside the Hamlar-Curtis Funeral Home & Crematory in Roanoke.

Wright went to public schools in Roanoke City and got his diploma from Lucy Addison High School. He started working for the bus company when he was in his early 20s in 1974. He worked there until the end of his life, which was 48 years and almost four months.

Rawleigh Quarles Sr., Wright’s uncle, said that Wright could have worked “way past the age of retirement” if he had wanted to.

He didn’t want to, though. His family and friends said that he liked driving. His regular route, number 71/72, ran between the Third Street Station and the LewisGale Medical Center in Salem for the past year or so.

When people heard that Wright had died, they called the Valley Metro offices to say how much they liked and respected him.

An employee of the bus system said that Wright had driven 3 million trips with passengers and had not had an accident in 35 years. He was the second most experienced driver.

Wright’s obituary said that his friends called him “Joko” and that he was “a constant jokester with a contagious laugh that could light up a room.”

“He got me good one time,” Barbara Snyder, a retired driver, said. That’s when Wright put a store security tag in her handbag, which set off alarms while she shopped for a week.

Charles Saunders, who has been a Valley Metro driver since 1973 and is the most experienced, talked about what makes a good bus driver. He said, “You’ve got to pay attention, watch what you’re doing, and love your passengers.”

One of Wright’s two daughters, Lashanda Ellington, said of her dad, “He was my best friend. I talked to him twice or three times a day.” He was in good health, but he choked on something, which she said seemed to be the cause of his death four days later.

A “not in service” Wright’s family took a Valley Metro bus from their home to the funeral. Ellington said, “I don’t think there was a dry eye on the bus.”

Myron DeBerry, who drives a Smart Way bus between Roanoke and Blacksburg, said, “What a great guy.” “We’ll miss him, I can tell you that much.”