Jean Kazmierczak

Jean Kazmierczak of Temple, PA, passed away Friday, February 21st at the Reading Hospital. She was 82.

Born in Kenhorst, PA, she was the daughter of the late Michael and Anna Kazmierczak.  She worked for 34 years as a school bus driver serving the Oley Valley School District last driving in June 2008.  Her school bus numbers over the years were 45 & 8.

She also spearheaded the annual school bus driver's safety poster contest, which back in the 90's was funded through her leadership of the operation of the Oley Valley Haunted House which took place on the second floor of the Oley Fire Company,  where all attendees received a "I survived the Oley Valley Haunted House" sticker.  The project was also staffed by school bus driver volunteers and their family and friends.  All participants always had a lot of fun doing the haunted house.  In recent years, she enjoyed many of the ghost hunting shows on the Travel Channel network.  A decade ago, she also authored and illustrated three books titled "National Chrome, National Chrome 2: The Good, The Bad & The Indifferent and National Chrome 3: School Bus Antics".  Those titles fell out of print a few years ago and were replaced in 2019 with a compilation book titled "The Diaries of Bus 8" available on Amazon which combines all books in the National Chrome Series. The name National Chrome was the actual name of the yellow school bus paint color at one point years ago. In her earlier work life, she worked on Penn Street in Reading at Pomeroy's and later Camp Hosiery. She was the dear mother of her only child, Roberta "Bobbi" Jean Nye also of Temple and is survived also by many pets at home who will also deeply miss her.  An avid pet lover her entire life, she had horses, dogs, cats, birds among other pets to include her bedside fish tank in her later years. A special mention was that decades ago she was accepted to attend the Philadelphia Police Training Academy, but chose other paths in life at the time instead.

Graveside Services will be held Wednesday, February 26, 2020 at 12:30PM at Charles Evans Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Animal Rescue League of Berks County, in Jean's memory.

Bean Funeral Homes of Shillington is in charge of arrangements; online condolences may be made at www.beanfuneralhomes.com