Mount Ayr Record News, Mount Ayr, Ringgold County, Iowa
Thursday, February 08, 2012

It's a small world, after all -- as this story about a Mount Ayr Community school bus shows.

The story begins with old bus number 6 -- that began its service as a new bus with the school district in 1988.

If you went on athletic or activity trips in the Mount Ayr Community school district between 1988 and 1997 or 1998, when it was traded off, you probably rode on the bus.The 71-passenger bus covered a lot of territory over the years on routes and on activity trips.

After the bus was traded away for a new bus 14 or more years ago one might not think that there would still be much life left in it.

So when Camille JACKSON of Kellerton received a note from her friend and former Mount Ayr resident Jeanette VARNER SHEFFER in January with a picture of the bus, it was quite a surprise.

Jeanette VARNER, or Jan as she was known, was the daughter of Alvin and Galine VARNER. Jan's dad was the manager for Iowa Southern Utilities at the time and they moved away in 1955 to another ISU post.

Jeanette and Camille had been friends through the fifth grade, when Jeanette moved away. Camille and Jeanette remained pen pals and then met up again when both attended the University of Iowa in 1964.

Jeanette became a nurse and served in the Navy for several years. Her husband, Greg SHEFFER, is a retired Marine. The SHEFFERS live in Coronado, CA, where they retired.

They are far from slowed down, however. They like running and mountain climbing in addition to their efforts to serve others, which has taken them to various places around the world.

So the bus story picks up when the SHEFFERSs went on a mission trip to help in Haiti this winter.

SHEFFER was surprised when she saw the bus that was to transport them to orphanages and the like where they were working. On the side of the bus it said "Mt. Ayr Community School District."

SHEFFER didn't think it could be anything but a bus from Mount Ayr, IA, and checked the registration sticker to make sure.

Sure enough, it was a old Mount Ayr Community school bus, so she sent the accompanying picture along for area residents to see.

Many of the buses in use had the school district information painted over, but the Mount Ayr information was still there for everyone to see.

The bus could probably tell quite a story if it were able to do so.

Somehow after it was traded in it got shipped to Haiti. And somehow it has been kept running for 24 years.

Those details are not known, however.

"It's quite a story to know that one of our buses is still being used to help people," Dick STILL, MAC transportation director said. "I sure enjoyed seeing the picture."

Transcription by Sharon R. Becker, March of 2012