01-08-2025
Family, colleagues take final ride with ‘cool school bus driver' slain in June double homicide
Carrying Melissa Wilson's ashes last Saturday, loved ones boarded the yellow Sunrise School Division vehicle she drove in a tribute to 'the cool school bus driver lady' who died in an unsolved rural shooting in June.
Wilson, 41, was slain in a June 20 double homicide in the Rural Municipality of Victoria Beach. Six weeks later, Mounties continue to look for the unidentified killer in what is believed to have been a targeted attack on the cottage-area resident and a 29-year-old man from Winnipeg.
The death of the mother of four who had three grandchildren prompted her Beausejour-area colleagues to ask the division to arrange a proper sendoff.
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Family members, friends and colleagues celebrated the life of Melissa Julie Wilson, 41, on Saturday with a final trip aboard the school bus she spent much of her life driving.
She was one of 87 bus drivers employed by the division, which is located about 60 kilometres northeast of Winnipeg, in the just-ended school year.
Sunrise administration agreed to allow the bus to be decorated and taken to a celebration of life in Victoria Beach on July 26. A bouquet of flowers, featuring her favourite tiger lilies, was secured to the hood. Selfies of Wilson in her parked bus and other photos were printed out and strung across it.
'It was a very tragic loss. Whatever we can do as a school community to support her family in Melissa's absence, we will do that,' said Jason Ziprick, the school division's transportation manager.
A online obituary referencing 'the cool school bus driver lady,' along with her job as an assistant caregiver, allowed Wilson to 'touch the hearts of others.'
'The students meant the world to her,' said Jodi Ruta, a school bus driver who took more than a dozen of Wilson's family members, as well as her dog and her urn, on a farewell trip.
Ruta delivered a 'last call' over the radio in honour of her former colleague.
'This is the last call for Route 12, Melissa Julie Wilson. We have it from here,' she told the packed bus and otherwise-silent weekend radio channel.
Moments later, Be My Angel by Manitoba country artist Kimberley Dawn blared from the speakers.
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A school bus was decorated and taken to a celebration of life in Victoria Beach on July 26 in memory of Melissa Julie Wilson.
Ziprick recalled that Wilson had driven kindergarten-to-Grade 12 students along Route 12 — a trek requiring stops in and around Gull Lake — for as long as he could remember.
'We're going to feel her loss again in September when another driver's going to be driving that route,' he said.
The division's student services team was made available to support affected community members at the end of the school year.
Ruta indicated it was a fitting tribute, given Wilson was 'a strong advocate' for mental health.
'She always wanted people to know they weren't alone,' the bus driver said.
The online obituary described Wilson as an outgoing and 'adventurous soul' who loved camping, foraging and fishing.
She had recently transformed her family's cottage in Victoria Beach into her primary residence, it says.
Wednesdays
What's next in arts, life and pop culture.
A list of of her wide-ranging talents included cooking, sailing and painting.
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Melissa Julie Wilson, 41, is being remembered as a great friend to many.
Manitoba RCMP have been searching for 'a person of interest' in a white pickup truck who was seen driving southbound on Highway 59 after gunshots rang out in Sandy Bay at about 2 a.m. Officers found two bodies at a property on a quiet road in the community on the shore of Lake Winnipeg, after receiving reports about a possible shooting in the area.
Anyone with information is asked to contact the Powerview RCMP at 204-367-8728, Crime Stoppers anonymously at 1-800-222-8477 or online.
— With files from Scott Billeck
Maggie MacintoshEducation reporter
Maggie Macintosh reports on education for the Free Press. Originally from Hamilton, Ont., she first reported for the Free Press in 2017. Read more about Maggie.
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