Driver receives school bus casket as gift

GRAND MEADOW, Minn. — Glen Davis, who was a school bus driver for Grand Meadow (Minn.) Public Schools for 55 years, received as a gift a casket built and painted to resemble a school bus, Rochester Post-Bulletin reports.

The casket was a gift from Davis’ friend, Jim Hindt, the owner of Hindt Funeral Homes, according to the newspaper. Hindt told Rochester Post-Bulletin that Davis often asked him "whether or not I had that casket for him." The gift also expressed Hindt’s gratitude to Davis for the kindness he and his family showed when Hindt's daughter was diagnosed with cancer. Hindt added that he wanted to do something that paid tribute to Davis' life.

Hindt considered putting a picture of a bus on the inside back panel of the casket, but then came up with the idea of using the entire casket as a canvas, according to the newspaper. He enlisted the help of a friend to do the initial painting and clear coating, and his niece did the detail work: the stop sign, the bus lights and the school bus number, Rochester Post-Bulletin reports.

Hindt wasn't sure how Davis would respond to the gift, but Davis couldn't have been happier, according to the newspaper. Davis’ daughter told Rochester Post-Bulletin that the bus casket celebrates her dad's life, that “he had such joy from driving a school bus,” and that he loves showing people the casket.

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