Wiggins woman, 108, has a dream to experience 1 simple thing. Her wish was granted.

A lot has changed in the 108 years that Inda Martin has been alive.

She’s seen the beginning and end of two world wars, 19 different presidents, the onslaught of the technology revolution, and the same actor playing the role of Victor Newman on “Young and The Restless” — Eric Braeden.

Martin, former school teacher who was born Sept. 14, 1910, had seen and and done many things in her life — except that one thing, she had never ridden on a school bus.

But one should never give up on their dreams because on Monday, at the age of 108, Martin rode a school bus for the first time.

Martin’s dream was brought to fruition when someone made a call to Wiggins Mayor Joel Miles.

“The mayor called me on Friday and said someone had asked him about getting Mrs. Martin on a bus,” said Stone County School District Transportation Manager Mike Parker. “I told him we could do that, but we couldn’t do it until Monday.”

On Monday, Parker said he loaded Martin up on his bus and took her for a ride. The first stop? Stone Elementary School.

“Mrs. Martin lives near the school, so I called the principal and she said we could stop by,” he said. “I’ve known Mrs. Martin all of my life and I’m over 60 years old — I was glad to help do this for her.”

Parker said he picked up Martin and brought her to the school, where she received a very special reception — the students sang “Happy Birthday” and “Wheels on The Bus” to her as she watched from the wheelchair ramp.

Parker said they hit the town after the stop at the school.

“I took her on a ride through town and we rode by her church and then I took her home,” he said. “She lives by the school and she sits outside and watches the buses — she was very happy at the end of our trip.”

This story was originally published September 19, 2018 at 10:35 AM.