When Jim Tomassetti started driving a school bus in 1972, a gallon of regular gasoline cost 36 cents on average, a brand-new Ford Mustang cost around $2,510, and people could start driving school buses at the age of 18 in Connecticut.

After driving a school bus for 52 consecutive years, Tomassetti was honored by his coworkers at All-Star Transportation with a celebratory breakfast on Thursday, June 5.

Local bus drivers, bus supervisors, Superintendent of Schools Anne Uberti, Director of Business and Finance Tanja Gouveia, and State Representative Mitch Bolinsky gathered at All-Star Transportation’s Newtown Terminal to congratulate Tomassetti for his years of hard work in Newtown.

Tomassetti has driven buses in Newtown for over a decade. He was an owner-operator bus driver, someone who owned and maintained their own school bus, in Newtown before working under All-Star. Beyond Newtown, Tomassetti has also driven in Monroe, Bridgeport, Trumbull, and Easton over the course of his career.

A room in the facility had several large tables draped in black table cloth and a banner that read "Congratulations 52 Years Jim Tomassetti" hung from the ceiling. In the room over, attendees could help themselves to tins of food filled with French toast, scrambled eggs, potatoes, sausage, and bacon provided by Blue Colony Diner.

At another table was jugs of Tropicana orange juice and Dunkin' coffee to go with their food.

All-Star General Manager Steve Gardner said it was a company decision to organize the breakfast and that they told Tomassetti about it in advanced. Bus supervisors even reminded Tomassetti over the phone that morning because he wanted to do extra work at the time the breakfast was scheduled.

Gardner noted Tomassetti is not retiring, but that the company wanted to do something special for him before he retires and create a fun memory honoring his work.

Everyone applauded Tomassetti when he finally arrived, with everyone affectionately teasing that he came in on "Jimmy Time" — fashionably late.

During his speech, Gardner called Tomassetti a special person for transporting kids safely to school every day. He continued by saying that Tomassetti truly cares about the kids, the parents, and his job.

"Getting up that early for that many years in a row ... I mean that just doesn't happen anymore," Gardner said.

Operations Manager Tasha Moffett gifted Tomassetti a red sweatshirt, which he talked about wanting for awhile. Bolinsky, who said he was a driving instructor for All-Star before it became The Next Street driving school, presented Tomassetti with a General Assembly Official Citation for his service.

Tomassetti also received a Service Award plague from All-Star in recognition of his "exceptional dedication, unwavering commitment to excellence."

The man of the hour was speechless for a moment, which his coworkers thought was funny since he's known for talking a lot.

Tomassetti finally shared that receiving these awards is "a total honor."

He continued, "I never thought I'd be driving for 52 years, but I did it, I'm still doing it, and I'm going to continue to do it."

As much as Tomassetti said he hates getting up early, he talked about how much he loves his job and takes pride in making his bus safe for everyone. Tomassetti described himself as a stickler for the rules and that he "doesn't put up with nonsense."

"I really just want to thank all of my friends and everybody here that I work with," Tomassetti said. "Thank you very much for everything."

What's kept Tomassetti going after all these years, he said, is that when he finds something he likes, he'll do it the rest of his life.

"That's just how I am," Tomassetti explained.

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Reporter Jenna Visca can be reached at jenna@thebee.com.