Madison Local School District bus driver Jodi Robertson coordinated a Stuff the Bus school supplies drive for the second year in a row on Friday, Aug. 8 as her festively decorated bus No. 16 sat in the parking lot of Big Lots on Ashland Road.
“If I can help in any way, I will,” she said. “I’ve been driving for 27 years and if I can help my kids in any way, I will. I love my kids. I love my school and I love my district.”
Robertson said she is a native of the Madison school district and comes from a family of Madison Ram alumni.
“I’m kind of green and whitey,” she said as she smiled, holding a handmade poster with “Stuff the Bus” bubble letters on it.
The idea for the school supplies campaign came from watching the news, said Robertson.
“I see it on channel 8 all the time and I’m thinking that our kids could use something like this, so let’s try it,” she said.
Last year’s school supply drive was so successful, Robertson said she had way more supplies and monetary donations then she could have ever imagined. This year, she hoped, was more of the same.
“The community really reaches out and helps the Madison kids,” she said.
After the school supplies collection is complete, Robertson said she takes them to the board of education office, where they divide them up among the schools in the district and then give them to the school principal to divvy up among their students.
“The kids always need a pencil,” she said.
On the sunny summer day filled with a light breeze, high school seniors Desiree Peterson and Katie Wagner held signs near the entrance to the parking lot in which they hoped to entice people who were driving by to stop and donate school supplies.
The 17-year-old girls said they enjoy helping their district and being able to help gives them a sense of pride in their school.
Madison Comprehensive High School alum Kim Messer dropped off two bags of school supplies to add her donation to the growing pile.
“This is my old school,” Messer said of why she donated school supplies. “I love my school and I want to do anything I can to help.”
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