Hartford School reunion group seeks Arnie Goble ‘bus buddies’ in Norfolk

In September 2010, a Hartford School reunion was held at Hagersville Secondary School with more than 400 former students coming from near and far.

Many tearful reconnections were made as the ‘union school’ for Haldimand and Norfolk students had been closed since 1960.

“It was a gamble having a school reunion for a school that had been closed for 50 years,” said Janice (Kersey) Schweder, chair of the Hartford School Reunion committee. “But it was my dream. I always said, ‘If I ever live long enough to retire, I’m going to have a reunion for that school’ because in 1960 they just closed the doors. There was no closing ceremony, nothing.”

Growing up in Little Buffalo, one kilometer east of Hartford, Schweder has fond memories of her elementary school.

“Small country schools were the best. We didn’t have all the facilities and the extras and the gymnasiums like current schools do, but… we loved that little school.”

Funds raised at the meeting ($5,000) were donated to West Haldimand Hospital in Hagersville.

It was so successful, Hartford School gatherings have continued twice each year in spring and fall, meeting at Windmill Café in Mount Pleasant and the Hartford Baptist Church hall, with a pause during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last fall, former Hartford School student Paul Gibbons invited the group to his horse farm near Oakland. His wife, Debbie, was a ‘bus buddy’ to many students who rode the route from Norfolk through the western tip of Haldimand County, Concessions 15-17 of Walpole Township to Waterford District High School when the high school in Hagersville and the former Northview Public School did not have room to accommodate all Haldimand students at that time.

The bus route was driven for many years by members of the Goble family from the Waterford area – Archie and his sons Keith and Arnie, who spent the most years driving the bus route. Years later, together with his wife Marg, Arnie attended several weddings of kids from his bus.

The Goble run through Haldimand ended in 1970. Hagersville had its new high school and elementary schools, but Arnie Goble continued to drive his bus in Norfolk until his death in the late 1980s.

Schweder said there are hundreds of Arnie Goble bus buddies in the area from the 1970s and 1980s, and even more going back as far as the 50s and 60s.

“We would love to include these individuals in our future gatherings,” said Schweder. “We figure there’s got to be at least 200-300 Arnie Goble Bus Buddies, just in the Norfolk area alone… if we can just find them.”

Harold Sonnenberg, former Norfolk County councilor, took great interest in the reunion group over the years, said Schweder, and has attended several events.

“He strongly recommends anyone who ever had Arnie Goble as a school bus driver to attend,” said Schweder, who celebrates her 72^n/a birthday this year.

The next Hartford School and Arnie Goble Bus Buddies Reunion is Saturday, May 6, 2023, beginning with a 1-3 pm ‘meet and greet’ at the farm of Paul and Debbie Gibbons at 2217 Old Highway 24 just south of Oakland. Horse drawn wagon rides begin at 3 pm

Cash donations will be divided equally between West Haldimand Hospital in Hagersville and Norfolk General Hospital in Simcoe.

“Last fall we had six new members attend our gathering,” said Schweder. “We hope to welcome you this year!”

Contact Janice Schweder at 519-484-2275 ([email protected]) or Paul Gibbons at 519-717-1226 to let them know you are interested in attending.