Post Messenger Recorder -

Thucydides once said, "What you leave behind is not engraved in stone monuments but what is woven in the lives of others." As we approach springtime without Barb (Disch) Funseth, we know the reality of Thucydides' sentiments. Barb truly wove her life around others as the former Transportation Director for the School District of Belleville from the time she started in her role driving bus in 1978; so, the Belleville learning community recently came together to honor her memory with a beautiful tribute that now graces the School District of Belleville's Bus Barn – a place Barb once called her home away from home. Wildcats Susette Alsteens, Betty Wolff, Anthony Nolden and Jannan Kosak are proud of their design work on this memorial because they all feel it truly represents who Barb was to the Belleville community: "She was all about the buses and she would sing, 'The Wheels On The Bus' to the kids on the bus when she drove and filled in for routes," says Kosak.

District Administrator Nate Perry describes Barb as being an integral part of the Belleville community. "When I first arrived in Belleville, I was amazed at the number of people who Barb knew. It seemed like she knew everyone! She knew where they lived because of the bus routes and who they were related to. She was the perfect fit as a bus driver and Transportation Director. She was also very convincing when she called to ask for volunteers for the Community Picnic. You couldn't say 'no' to Barb. You also wouldn't meet another person as humble as she was. When informed about her induction into the Wildcat Wall of Fame, she simply couldn't believe it. It took several phone calls to convince her that she was going to be inducted."

Barb was humble, but her influence in the Belleville community ran deep. Helping and mentoring staff to also find their place working for the School District of Belleville was important to Barb. Jannan Kosak is thrilled to have helped Barb's memorial come to rest atop the doorway to the Belleville Bus Barn as it is here, in her role as District Transportation Director, that Barb helped her first find her place!

Initially, Jannan recalls she was having difficulty in believing she could fill Barb's shoes as the Director of Transportation, but in true character, Barb helped her find the confidence. "I did talk with her about taking this position as I was having my doubts about doing this job. She quickly let me know she thought I could do this job, after all she didn't have the computer experience, and she thought I did."

After years of watching Barb work with the community – stopping in during the summer months to talk to new home owners to find out if they might have kids that would need to be bussed, Barb emphasized her work was all about the kids – and that didn't take a computer! Barb did routes for years with only a notebook and pencil on her dining room table. Barb was a very personable person and using the computer just wouldn't let her get out and talk with the new people moving to Belleville, so she did it in her own special way.

Kosak recalls, "I remember one time driving for girls' volleyball, Barb sent a pan of cookies for the girls. I found out later that Barb did this quite a bit for the players on the volleyball team. She would often bring treats for the girls to have after the game."

In this way Barb Funseth was a true Wildcat. Her job never had a start and end time, instead she was there to cheer everyone on – from singing "Happy Birthday" to the kids who rode her bus on their special days, to convincing a staff member they had what it took to soar! She had pride in her community and that is something the School District of Belleville never wants to forget – Barb had a big heart for anything Belleville!

And the School District of Belleville in return has shown it has a big heart for Barb and the mark she left weaving her Wildcat pride and love for community into its schools. When you weave your life around your town and the people who live in it, you leave an indelible mark for all to see. Barb's new memorial emphasizes this fact and represents all she touched from having a student, senior Anthony Nolden, create the memorial through his studies with Ed Neumann in his independent class, to the staff's effort to install it for all to see on the District's Bus Barn.

Jannan Kosak, Anthony Nolden, Betty Wolf, Susette Alsteens, Nate Perry, Ed Neumann, Steve O'Connor and Mike Johnson may have been the core group to work together from idea to finish on this project, but they represent ALL of the people in the Belleville learning community who loved Barb. Their beautiful teamwork now allows a unique memorial to hang proudly in a place she loved to remind us all of her love for the Wildcat community. In this special way, honoring Barb's memory will allow her wheels to continue to turn for the good of Belleville.