Community means working together when someone needs help, and a student in Bradford Area School District was the most recent recipient of the local community’s goodwill.

Alden Bashline is a Floyd C. Fretz Middle School student. He had trouble getting to the bottom of the driveway at his home in his wheelchair to catch the bus, Superintendent Katy Pude explained during the November school board meeting on Nov. 8.

Lori Peace, a social worker for the district, and Dana Pence teamed up to help resolve this issue and get Alden safely from his door to the bus.

Various options were considered, and it was determined that a wooden ramp would not be long enough or practical to resolve the issue.

CARE for Children became involved, and the project began to take off. Several local businesses contributed to the effort.

Pine Valley Landscaping donated labor, Glenn O. Hawbaker Inc. donated limestone and Taylor & Armstrong Contracting donated trucks to haul and equipment to create the ramp.

Now, Bashline can easily travel to the bus pickup and dropoff location, and the molded landscape feature provides a more accessible and maintainable surface for him to travel.

“Lori said it best. She said ‘There is a strength in our community, and that strength is unity.’ I want to thank her for getting the ball rolling on this project,” Pude said during the school board meeting.

Pude shared the story both as a testament to the community’s ability to work together and also an ongoing effort to share the hard work and passion of the district’s teachers.