John and his
grandfather
(above) spent
lots of quality
time together
building this
awesome
school bus!M
y son John loves school buses.
He has been captivated by
these bright yellow, wheeled
marvels with their lights, le-
vered doors, swing-out stop signs and
back-up beepers ever since his older
brother began attending school many
moons ago. John’s grandfather (my dad),
aectionately known as “Pépère,” decided
to build John his own school bus for his
15th birthday. It was not intended to be
just another gift that would be present-
ed to John all wrapped up; when Pépère
told John that together they would build
him his very own bus, John was all smiles.
John has Fragile X syndrome, and even
more than school buses, he loves to be a
good helper.
An old riding lawnmower served as thebase for John’s bus. They removed the bro-
ken mower deck and repaired the tires.
They then proceeded to build the body,
using remnants of wood, plywood and tin
from Pépère’s handyman projects, as well
as bits and pieces from various sources
such as an old mirror, a handle from an old
tool, and scrap-metal bars. Other than the
yellow paint, the stop sign and the lettering
on the bus, this project was made entirely
of recycled materials. The time spent to-
gether with his Pépère, along with John’s
sense of accomplishment and pride of
ownership, are priceless!
John loves to use his bus to run errands
between home and Grandmama’s, and was
happy to oblige when he was asked to lead
his former elementary school in last year’s
fall fair parade! WHEELSMAGIC
SCHOOL BUS
Building a miniature bus with ‘Pépère’
was a special treat for this birthday boy!
by Chantal Purdy, Ramore, Ont.63