Willowbrook hosts celebration to honor retiring bus driver

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On May 8, Willowbrook hosted a celebration to recognize and thank Mel Baer for his years of service driving buses with Cottage Hill Operating Company.

Baer has been a bus driver since fall 1994 and will retire at the end of June. During that time, he has driven for District 88 and Elmhurst Community Unit School District 205 (when it was part of District 88). Baer said he has made countless memories through the years of driving students before school, after school and to/from extracurricular/athletic events.

Willowbrook hosted a cookout to honor the positive impact Baer has had on students and staff at the school and presented him with a personalized Cubs jersey and a photo of staff posing behind a cutout bus.

“Some of the best experiences were the overnight events such as Speech Team and Mock Trial, as well as performances with the music and theatre departments,” Baer said. “There were a lot of good times, with a lot of good people. I will definitely miss interacting with the coaches, the teachers and the kids.”