What is the Angel Bus?

The Angel Bus is a wheelchair accessible van that provides transportation free of charge to Residents of St. Joseph’s Lodge and adult citizens of western Manitoulin with mobility issues.

Jimmy Embarking Angel Bus.jpg

How to use the Angel Bus:

If you cannot safely get into a car or truck and you live west of an imaginary line through Providence Bay, Mindemoya, M'Chigeeng and Kagawong, please contact our Dispatcher, Derek, by either cell: 705-863-3776 or email: angelbusdispatch@gmail.com. Derek will take down the particulars of your trip and try to coordinate Angel Bus and Driver availability with your appointment time. You must arrange to have an able-bodied escort accompany the person in need of accessible transportation. Our Drivers do not lift passengers and while driving they are unable to offer assistance to passengers. Our Drivers are trained to safely load, secure, and unload passengers. Currently we have 14 volunteer Drivers and are always looking for more. Please contact Maya Baumann (see Contact page) if you would like to join our caring crew of angels.

Keeping the Angel Bus rollin’ . . .

Since its inception, the Angel Bus initiative has been embraced by the community as a viable, needed and valued service. Local businesses, service clubs, municipalities, churches and individual citizens have generously sustained its operation with donations. During the past 6 summers, Angel Bus quilt raffles featuring talented local quilters, have become the fundraiser of the Angel Bus Inc. The Angel Bus is totally dependent on donations and all the work, whether it be serving on the Board, organizing events, dispatching or driving the Angel Bus, is done by volunteers. All monies raised go toward the ongoing maintenance and operation of the Angel Bus. Large annual contributions of $1,000 or more, are acknowledged with signage on the sides of the Angel Bus. This signage amounts to over $20,000 annually and covers our annual operating costs. In 2025 the Angel Bus went on 120 outings, including medical runs, family events and fun/social outings such as the Providence Bay Fair, picnics, fall colour and Christmas light tours. Our expenses totaled $16.915.64 last year, due in large part to insurance ($9,955.28) and fuel ($4,514.39). Early in 2023, we were able to replace our 2008 vehicle with a 2022 Ford Transit, capable of transporting 9 passengers, two of which can be wheelchairs. The new Angel Bus uses 50% less fuel than the old, 2008 one did! If you would like to donate to the Angel Bus, please go to our Donation page.

“Sunshine & Hope”

This queen sized quilt, raffled in summer 2025, was donated by the Happy Quilters. Charlene Chambers, right, is representing the makers and Melissa McIntosh, left, of Lakeside Longarmer, was the quilter. Sue Renshaw, who summers in Kagawong, was the lucky winner at the draw held on October 11th, at Split Rail Brewery Oktoberfest celebrations. Thank-you ALL!!!

The Angel Bus needed a lift… and the community picked us up!

After years of savings, the Angel Bus Committee was on track for the purchase of a replacement used vehicle in 2024, but mounting mechanical and structural issues with the 2008 model made replacement in 2023 necessary.

The new Angel Bus was bought in February 2023, thanks to a very successful crowdsourcing campaign that raised the final $30,000 needed….actually, over $34,000 in just under 5 days, at the end of January ‘23! Combined with extremely generous donations of $15,000 each from Manitoulin Transport and the Douglas A. Smith Family Foundation, plus the $80,000 saved from Angel Bus donations over the previous six years, we were able to purchase a 2022 Ford Transit 350 extended Demo Cargo Van, accessibly modified with a side wheelchair lift, 5 moveable seats and up to 2 wheelchairs, to make a 6-passenger van. Our Drivers have been trained on it and by all accounts, it’s a wonderful replacement! Passenger views and comfort are very much improved!

Thanks to all the Angels who made this possible!

In the News

Manitoulin Expositor, May 17, 2023 “Newly purchased bus unveiled”

Sandy Cook, Chair of the Angel Bus Committee, thanking Doug Smith, founder of Manitoulin Transport, for helping make the new Angel Bus a reality on Manitoulin.

Quilt Raffle Draw

held on October 12, 2023 at Split Rail Brewing Co.’s Oktoberfest
shows Stan Zieleniewski, Director as well as Driver, reading the name of the winning ticket drawn by Andrea Smith (co-owner of Split Rail) with Shirley De Roche (assistant general manager) holding the draw barrel.

FROM Gore Bay Manitoulin Lodge Auxiliary Inc. TO… The Angel Bus Inc.

Changing Our Corporate Goals: On July 1st, 2025, St. Joseph’s Health Centre of Sudbury, took over Manitoulin Lodge, the previously for-profit long-term care facility in Gore Bay. The newly named St. Joseph’s Lodge is now being run as a non-profit. To donate to St. Joseph’s, you can click this text. To designate St. Joseph’s Lodge, select the home from the ‘Gift Designation’ dropdown menu.

This change meant that our predecessor Gore Bay Manitoulin Lodge Auxiliary Inc., whose charitable work since 2002 helped fund the Volunteer Program at the Lodge and purchase extra supplies for Residents, was no longer necessary. So… the Auxiliary nas now become The Angel Bus Inc., a registered charity whose sole focus is to continue providing accessible transportation to adults living on Western Manitoulin Island who can no longer safely get into a car or truck.

The Angel Bus Inc. BOARD

Maya Baumann, Chair Stephanie Steele, Treasurer Sandy Cook, Secretary
Shirley Farquhar, Director
Linda Ferguson, Director Ted Kilpatrick, Director
Stan Zieleniewski, Director

Additional Colleagues of The Angel Bus Inc.

Derek Moxam, Dispatch

Diana Zieleniewski, Thank-you and Receipting

The Angel Bus—A Manitoulin Community Success Story

Back in 2015, The Angel Bus Campaign was kick started by two wonderfully generous corporate donations—Manitoulin Transport and LaFarge—that within the first weeks took start-up fundraising halfway to its goal! Another source of heart-warming contribution came from the Residents of Manitoulin Lodge themselves. The Residents’ Council voted in favour of a very generous donation from its own budget! In addition, the Residents starred in a video of their “jugband” performing The Angel Bus Song. This became part of a crowdsourcing initiative to finish the Campaign. We just couldn’t shelve this joyful video…the star slide whistle player will brighten your day…enjoy!