Aug 19, 2008 6:15 pm US/Eastern
Oxford Janitor Changes From He To She
OXFORD (WBZ) ―
Students at an elementary school in Oxford will learn that someone at their school has changed quite a bit over the summer.
Brian Bonin, the night custodian at
Clara Barton Elementary School, is now Brianna Bonin.
Bonin, 54, is in the process of changing his gender and administrators want students and their parents to be prepared when they return to school. A letter is being sent out this week from Superintendent Ernest Boss and Principal Norman Yvon.
Boss, who declined to speak on camera, said, "She has a right to do what she wants and we support it.
Parents such as Joyce Brescia, who has a daughter in second-grade, received the letter and says it doesn't bother her and she will be supportive.
"It's a choice that he made and it's his choice. It is what it is," she said.
The letter about Bonin says, in part, "As we begin the school year, he will begin living and working as a woman...if they ask at school...The best thing to tell (students) is that our custodian used to be a man. She has changed her gender role and is now a woman."
In the letter to parents, the school says Bonin "has been a valued employee of the Oxford Public Schools for many years, and we expect his exemplary performance to continue as he changes gender roles."
Parent Heidi Principe agrees the school system shouldn't discriminate against anyone.
"People have a right to make a choice; but my only concern is my son," said Principe, whose son is 8 years old.
She said she does not know whether he'll notice a difference or ask about it.
"I really don't know that I want to try to explain the situation to him or how to explain it to him. That would be my only concern," she said.
One parent who preferred not to speak on camera said she thinks this isn't really news and there are other more important things to report.
The letter to parents of the Clara Barton School also says, "whether or not one agrees with the custodian's decision, the Oxford Public Schools do not discriminate...and expect him to be treated with the same respect as every other employee.
Bonin told the
Worcester Telegram & Gazette he has not had gender reassignment surgery yet, but plans to do so when he can afford it.
He said his announcement has made him happier, but it has cost him. His wife of 14 years left him and his 33-year-old son is having trouble with it. Bonin said his 28-year-old daughter has accepted his decision.
News Reporter Ron Sanders contributed to this report.
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