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Students send special message to grandma in the window
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Every weekday, students in Washington load their school bus, settle into their seats and anxiously await the moment they get to greet the grandma in the window. - photo by Jessica Ivins
ARLINGTON, Wash. Every weekday, students in this small Washington state town load their school bus, settle into their seats and anxiously await the moment they get to greet the grandma in the window.

That woman 93-year-old Louise Edlen sits diligently at her dining room table, ready to wave to the nearly 90 children who have become like family to her over the past five years, according to KING 5 News. Edlen has become a daily staple in the lives of the students she greets, so earlier this month when she wasnt in her regular spot at the window, the kids and their bus driver began to worry.

That concern grew when she failed to appear over the next few days, KING 5 reports. Bus driver Carol Mitzelfeld decided to do a little digging and learned their beloved grandma had suffered a stroke. When she told the kids, they were devastated.

It was kind of heartbreaking because she was always there, said seventh-grader Axtin Bandewerfhorst.

Mitzelfeld wanted to do something to let Edlen know how much she meant to the kids on the bus, so she brought flowers to the rehabilitation center where she was recovering, according to KING 5. The next day, a sign appeared in the dining room window where Edlen used to sit.

It read, Thank You.

The students were thrilled.

It shows how much we mean to her, said 10th-grader Cheyanne Holt.

Mitzelfeld and the kids wanted to go a step further, so they took a photo of the group waving from inside the bus a temporary replacement to comfort the grandmother theyd all come to love. Mitzelfeld dropped it off in person, making sure to let Edlen know how much she meant to the people who received that daily wave.

It means everything in the world to her, her husband of 53 years, Dave Edlen, told KING 5. It gives her something to look forward to every day.

Edlen returned home Tuesday and kept her promise sitting in her regular spot, ready to greet the kids on their way home from school.
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