At just 4 feet 9 inches tall, people often do a double take when they see Maria Regina Gramatica Tubog behind the wheel of a massive 40-foot bus cruising through Edmonton’s busy streets.

“My feet barely touch the floor,” Maria says with a laugh. But her height has never stopped her from dreaming big — especially when it comes to giving her children a better life.

Maria, now 51, is originally from Dumaguete City, Negros Oriental.

Before moving to Canada, she worked as an accountant, handling audits and bookkeeping while running a small hog-raising and mango business on the side.

“Life was busy, but not stable,” she recalls. That uncertainty made her start thinking seriously about her children’s future and how to send them to college.

Her big break came in January 2012 when her sister, who was already in Edmonton, helped her get a job as a nanny.

“Her employer offered me a job and sponsored me,” Maria says. “That’s how it all started.”

But as life in Canada often goes, Maria’s journey took unexpected turns. Her employer, Dr. Ging — an Ethiopian doctor — once told her, “Here, driving is a need, not a want.”

“At first, I didn’t really understand what she meant,” Maria admits. “But she was right. Driving here isn’t just a convenience — it’s freedom, it’s opportunity.”

While working as a nanny, she practiced driving her employer’s car. Three years later, she found herself taking a job as a café attendant at the Edmonton International Airport. Then one day, an unexpected change in her work schedule pushed her to take control of her future.

“I got upset because they suddenly changed my day off — on the very day I came in to work!” she recalls. “I went home frustrated. But after a few days of being jobless, I told myself, this is it, I’m going to driving school.”

Maria enrolled in a driving course, earned her Class 2 driver’s license, and soon landed a job as a school bus driver while teaching driving on the side. “I was driving kids to school during the day and teaching people how to drive in my free time,” she says proudly.

Still, Maria wasn’t done dreaming. Thinking long-term about her retirement and job security, she decided to apply to Edmonton Transit Service (ETS) as a bus driver.

“I just discovered it,” she says. “Driving this big bus, carrying all these people whose lives are literally in my hands — it was something I never imagined for myself.”

The first time she sat behind the wheel of an ETS bus, Maria admits she was terrified. “I’m only 4’9”! I was sweating so much because I was scared,” she laughs. But with patience, discipline, and the guidance of her instructors, she mastered every turn and maneuver.

These days, her mornings start early — checking her route, inspecting her bus, and heading out to pick up passengers. Her mission is simple but powerful: to make sure everyone, including herself, gets home safely.

“The best part of my day is when I park the bus at the garage and realize I didn’t make any mistakes on the road. That’s the best feeling,” she says.

One winter memory stands out vividly. “I was in West Clareview, and everything was covered in ice,” she recalls. “A man ran toward the bus and slipped right under it. Luckily, the bus wasn’t moving. From then on, I always make sure passengers come to me instead of me stopping too close. Some people get mad that I stop a bit farther, but it’s for everyone’s safety.”

After years behind the wheel, Maria says the road has taught her a lot. With Alberta’s unpredictable weather, one lesson sticks with her: “Speed dictates control.”

Now celebrating five years with Edmonton Transit Service, Maria has become an inspiration — not just to her family, but to fellow immigrants carving their own path in Canada.

Her message to newcomers is simple and heartfelt: “If you plan to come to Canada, be ready for anything. Learn a little about a lot of things. Be flexible. Be open. That’s how you make it here.”