The base of Grouse Mountain was abuzz with excitement as a group of 190 kids prepared to soar 2,800 feet above the trees on the SkyRide gondola.

They were arriving for Variety the Children’s Charity annual picnic atop the mountain where they will be treated to a day of food, fun and games. Providing the transportation for this event was a team of Transit Operators with Coast Mountain Bus Company (CMBC), organized by Keith Story.

Keith — along with fellow operators Mike, Alana, Alex, Dan, and Derek — volunteered during their time off from work to operate six buses, provided by CMBC, to drive the kids to the picnic.

Variety the Children’s Charity supports kids with extra needs, providing them with the resources and assistance to let them do what they do best — be kids! Keith, who has been a Transit Operator since 1991, has been volunteering with Variety for more than 30 years.

Keith is delighted the kids are up the mountain again after the event’s two-year hiatus due to the pandemic.

Dan, who like Keith has volunteered with Variety and worked as a transit operator for more than 30 years, is just as thrilled. To him, volunteering at Variety is worthwhile, saying he’d only take days off “for this and family.”

When asked what kept him volunteering, he recalls a memory when Variety helped his good friends’ son.

“Their son had a kidney operation at [BC] Children’s Hospital and the equipment that saved his life was bought by Variety Club,” says Dan.

Barbara Stewart, a Variety volunteer of 60 years, says that the event wouldn’t be happening without the buses that transport the hundreds of kids.

Thanks to Keith and his fellow Transit Operators, six bus load of kids have gone on a long-awaited adventure on the gondola to enjoy their picnic atop Grouse Mountain.