For as long as he can remember, Mamadou, aka, Moe, has wanted to work on engines. His father came from Senegal and drove trucks for a living, and Moe was right by his side learning how to fix those trucks to help his dad. Fast forward to his senior year in high school and he and his best friend David, another Encore senior, have secured internship positions at the Bus Garage helping our mechanics work on the busses that transport our students safely every day.
Along with Jordan, the three interns work with Brandon, RCS' Lead Technician and John Duda, Lead Mechanic and have gone above and beyond the hours needed for Mr. Underwood's internship program. Moe loves the Bus Garage so much that he hopes to continue to work for Reynoldsburg after graduation, while he and David work and save to start their own shop.
"These guys are great," said Brandon. "Respectful, hard working and willing to get their hands dirty to get the job done. I try to help them outside of their hours too, showing them what tools they'll want to have on hand when they open their own shop."
"Working at the Bus Garage is like one big family," said Moe. "We work hard, but we can goof around with eachother and have fun, too."
Each day, the three interns check in with Brandon and John to see what needs to be done- everything from filling bottles to working on exhaust systems, brake jobs and full engine tear downs. "That was probably the hardest job so far," said David, referring to the engine tear down.
"David is great at body work," said Brandon. "We had a bumper that needed repairing and I basically said, 'let's see what you can do!' and he fixed the bumper with no help from us. We didn't have to step in at all." David learned the body repair side of the business from Eastland-Fairfield Tech Center.
Jordan, who was not available for the interview, works mostly on the computer/technical side, said Brandon.
Both David and Moe want to continue in the trade after graduation. In addition to hopefully continuing to work for Reynoldsburg, Moe and David plan to get their certifications in Diesel Technology. David is also on the bowling team for RHS, with a 200 average. Moe likes spending time with family and friends outside of the garage.