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Before the coronavirus pandemic, House was looking forward to going on a trip to celebrate her birthday, which falls on Leap Day. She enjoys spending time with her children, who range in age from 13 to 24, and her husband, with whom she's been married for a year this July.

The last photo House has on her phone from before her world changed due to the COVID-19 crisis is from a trip she took with her union to Albany, New York, to discuss various worker protections.

\"PHOTO:
Mia House
PHOTO: This is the last photo House has on her phone from before her world changed due to the COVID-19 crisis.
>

“We're taking selfies together on a bus ride up to New York State, smiling together, close, no mask,” she said.

House has described her experience during the pandemic as “humbling” and said that it made her appreciate life in new ways. She thinks she is going to come out of this experience a better person.

“A lot of close people have passed due to this and it hurt,” she said. “Nobody thought at the beginning of the year this was going to happen or, you know, we were going to go through something as tumultuous as this.”

As New York City moves toward the first phase of reopening on June 8, House said she is noticing that the buses are becoming more crowded. Despite some fears, she sees her job as an important part of helping the community.

“The reason I wanted to get back to work was to continue helping the public,” she said. “This is what I signed up for; this is my job. I wanted to get back to help my union to help my coworkers in this time of pandemic that we’re going through.\"

The job can be stressful, from dealing with screaming babies to traffic, but House values when passengers go out of their way to express their gratitude.

“The fact that some of the passengers, they make it their business to say thank you,” she said. “They make it their business to say thank you and I appreciate what you're doing.”

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