Behind the wheel of Salve’s heart

By: Briana Scafidi
Posted In: News

A childlike gleam finds itself in Donald Mosher’s eyes and lights his face like Christmas morning as he drives past Newport’s First Beach. At first it’s hard to tell what he’s so happy about. His van is filled with students and that’s the way he likes it, but this gleam is for something different, and he’s happy to tell a packed shuttle all about it. He remembers when he was a kid; First Beach was something quite different then. A large dining hall, boardwalk, merry-go-round, and roller-coaster sat like a summer dream beside the ocean. But the hurricane of 1938 took it all away-knocked it right off the beach and into history.

Winds of change haven’t stopped blowing in Newport since. When Salve Regina College opened its doors in 1947, the entire institution was confined to one building. A small group of women studied, ate, and even slept in Ochre Court. In sixty years the school has adopted and constructed dozens of buildings, opened its doors to thousands of students, became coed, and even recently started accepting more male students than female. But a few things have remained constant within the Salve community. One of the most important is a personal dedication to students.

A MUTUAL RESPECT

Donald Mosher, or “Mo” as most of Salve knows him, has lived in Newport for 76 years. He retired from his maintenance position in Newport Public Schools in 1994 and applied for a job at Salve, where a neighbor of his worked as a shuttle driver. Salve hired him, and he has since devoted his weekends to driving students, as if they were his own, to their community service sites, the supermarket and other downtown locations. “I just love working for kids,” Mo says. “I love it here.”

And Salve loves him back. In his white collared shirt, crew-neck Salve sweatshirt, brown slacks and loafers, Mo is undoubtedly one of the warmest characters on Salve’s campus. The baseball cap pulled over his white head of hair is the perfect touch to the tiny grandfather’s appearance. He is Salve’s No.1 fan. He is behind the wheel of the University’s heart.

“I can’t get in his shuttle without just wanting to hug him,” junior Meghan Muller says. “I want to ask him to be my grandpa.” Most students seem to agree. Freshmen pack the van on weekend nights, speaking loudly to each other about the events of the evening or engaging in general gossip. But upperclassmen have learned. Mo is the best part about the shuttle ride. They sit calmly and chat with him about his life or their own.

Students are very seldom rude to Mo. He brushes the idea of the bad-mannered ones off with a shrug of his shoulders. “They’re a very small minority,” he says. “The students here are very polite. They treat me well. They respect me.”

In his humility he seems not to realize exactly how well-respected he is. Newer drivers, friendly though less known, apologize to students. “I hope you’re not too disappointed that you didn’t get Mo,” they say.

A NEIGHBOR’S PERSPECTIVE

Though Mo has only been driving the Salve shuttle for eight years, he’s been along for the University’s 60-year-ride, watching Salve change as a Newport resident. He says that his neighbors have always had their concerns about the tax roll as Salve continues to develop, but that overall, they think a lot of the school. “Salve employs a lot of locals,” he says, “and they give back to the community. I think that’s what people love. Salve really gives back.” Mo himself loves the Salve community, and thinks that the constant development to the campus is great. “I love the combination of new and old,” he says. “It’s unique to Salve. There’s no campus in the world like ours.”

Mo will celebrate 49 years of marriage this spring, and even at 1:00 a.m. on a Saturday morning he says with vigor after a night of driving, “Now, I will fill the horse with petrol, and go home to my wife!” He goes home with the same enthusiasm that he comes back with. His dedication is what keeps Salve moving.