If you (parent or student) would like to submit a testimonial, please feel free to email a brief testimonial of your experience with 1st Gear Driving to Sonya at:
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or via the Contact Us menu. If it is appropriate, it will be posted! Thank you!
"... My 16 year old daughter completed her Driver’s Education with 1st Gear in December of 2006. I have nothing but praise for the excellent job Sonya did in preparing Lesley for getting her license.
Lesley is diagnosed with ADHD and has often struggled in school with staying focused and retaining information. I was concerned before enrolling Lesley in Driver’s Ed that she would encounter similar difficulties in that endeavor. After interviewing several different area instructors, we selected Sonya based on her enthusiasm and dedication. She did not disappoint us. Lesley successfully passed the course, got an excellent score on her 1st attempt at the written test and a perfect score on her road test. She has also evolved into a very capable and careful driver. Much of her success is likely attributable to Sonia’s efforts..." Carol L. - December 2006
"...she was always very professional as well as very accommodating to all of her students. She consistently went above and beyond what any drivers’ education instructor would do for their students.  Sonya always was there for her students and made sure they would attend all of their in class instruction, observation time, and on the road driving time. She had a very special way of making the student feel comfortable but also made the student understand that driving correctly was a very serious situation.
I thank Sonya Brown for her patience and ability to work with teenagers, like our son because we know that teenagers are not the easiest people to work with. She has taught John to be a cautious and courteous driver." John & Catherine M. - April 2007
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"It is with pleasure that I am writing this letter of recommendation for Sonya Brown and 1st Gear Driving School. My son, Patrick, attended Sonya’s school in Amherst during the 2006-2007 mid-winter session.
Prior to selecting the 1st Gear Driving School for my son’s driver’s education, we contacted a number of schools in the area. We were very impressed with Sonya, her experience, and her description of her curriculum and approach to driver’s education. We had high expectations and feel that Sonya met them completely and our son will be a better driver for all her efforts.
My wife is a high school teacher and has a lot of experience working with classes made up of sixteen year old students. Such classes can be challenging, at times. Again, we were very impressed with Sonya’s ability to handle a class of teenagers on such an exciting (to them) topic. Equally impressive was Sonya’s ability to successfully accommodate diverse schedules for the hands-on driving sessions and still always be right on time!
We have already recommended 1st Gear to students looking into driving schools and will continue to enthusiastically do so. We feel we made the best choice for our son’s driving future." Tim M. - Dec. 2006
"We just wanted you to know how pleased we were by the quality of driving instruction that you provided to our son Ben. As you know, he was initially very apprehensive about attending driving school and fearful that he would make mistakes-- either in class or during driving exercises-- and become embarrassed. We appreciated your taking the time to discuss these issues with Ben and help relieve his anxiety.
Taking your classes and learning the fundamentals of safe driving was an important milestone for Ben. I know that almost immediately after starting the course at 1st Gear Driving, Ben was always looking forward to the next session. Clearly, you helped him not only surmount his anxiety about driving, but also instilled in him many valuable good driving habits and skills. Many times he mentioned how much he enjoyed your classes and driving excursions.
Most of the driving schools in this area are known for large, impersonal classes. I've also heard many stories from neighbors about how so many driving instructors are poor communicators and even demonstrate poor judgment. In fact, the driving instructor at our high school had Ben's older brother get behind the wheel and drive for the first time in a rainstorm at night! We feel very lucky that we found out about you and 1st Gear, since your conscientiousness and personalized attention made a huge difference!" Andrew & Karen M. - April 2007
"I wanted to take the time and thank you for the driving instruction that you gave to my son, Thomas.
Thomas enjoyed your class and felt that he received a lot of information in both the classroom and instructional environment. I for one appreciated how flexible you were with driving hours and made the all the time fit into Thomas’ schedule. Out of my three children of driving age, this was by far the best experience.
I would like to point out that the lengths you went for the class developed a trust and respect that exists even still today. I know that Thomas visits you on occasion and certainly we have discussed elements of his learning experience as he applies them every day on the road..." Â Erin E. - April 2007
"Sonya was our son's driving instructor. Alex enjoyed going to driver’s ed., he also learned a great deal and taught his parents a few things also. Sonya took Alex on the highway to teach him how to change lanes and drive at a different speed than around town. Sonya taught the students how to change a tire and that has paid off, Alex has changed his first tire. I remember the day the flat happened and when I met up with Alex, I asked him how he knew how to change the tire? The reply was Sonya Brown, thank you Sonya" Jayne L. - April 2007
