Bob, Bogart & the Kindness Bus

Parked in the left-hand lanes of Kirkwood and Dunn avenues next to Peoples Park was the kindness bus.

The old, light blue bus that Bob Votruba bought on Craigslist was painted by numerous family friends and neighbors. Many wrote their own words, images and thoughts of inspiration on the bus, including one from a 91-year-old that reads: “Tell your love you love her everyday – cy.”

Sleeping alone on a mattress on the floor, Votruba prepares for the next decade of his life as a rubber tramp.

But after 10 weeks of visiting 23 colleges on his kindness bus  with his dog, Bogart, Votruba thinks he will do this for the rest of his life.

Spreading kindness is what Votruba does, he said. He gave up his “grossly spoiled” lifestyle to do it. “One Million Acts of Kindness” in a person’s lifetime is the goal, and it’s as simple as a smile or holding a door open.

Once a successful home builder, the Cleveland native went from living in a 10,000-square-foot house, to a 3,000-square-foot house to the school bus which he now lives in. He sleeps in Wal-Mart parking lots.

The pieces fell into place that allow him to do this. His three kids are all away at colleges in Colorado, and he is divorced.

But the reason why he does this came from two life experiences.

The Virginia Tech shootings, Votruba said, was one of them.

“How can so much hatred in one person’s heart drive them to shoot 32 people?” he said.

Suicides very close to home are also a reason. A friend of his son’s and a friend of his own took their own lives, he said.

“I just think if those people were even slightly part of this, things would have been different,” Votruba said.

Starting small, Votruba talked to 10 kids a week, but that number has since skyrocketed to 4,000.

The three B’s, as he calls them – the bus, Bogart and Bob – are picking up speed on the national and international level. His bumper sticker, “sow only seeds of love” is on display somewhere in every continent – including Antarctica.

There is nothing more important for a dad to do, he said.

Votruba never went to college, but at age 54 , he said he plans on visiting as many as possible.

IU is his 23rd.

When he first started his tour, his campaign for kindness garnered him so much attention around the Cleveland area that he could barely make his way out of Ohio, said Darla Motil, manager of community relations for the Achievement Centers for Children.

Motil was out with her daughter and husband in Cleveland when she came across the “One Million Acts of Kindness Bus.” She was so impressed by Votruba’s dedication, her family had him over for dinner and put him up for the night.

“His message is simple and so true,” Motil said. “If we just pay attention and look out for another we can make the world a better place.”

Although Votruba carries with him a load of love and kindness, he also has a great deal of concern for today’s college student generation and the current state of the world. He said he feels people have gotten away from kindness from the heart and have developed too much of an “all-about-me” attitude.

“I believe this is the greatest generation that has ever existed,” Votruba said, “Cause you know what – you are going to have to be.”

Votruba doesn’t so much preach as he does talk with people. He encourages people to find something they are truly passionate about that others will benefit from – a system that he feels anybody can embrace and many already have.

Two women have changed their retirement plans after speaking with Bob, one of which will be taking care of handicap kids, he said.

“It’s so rewarding to look in their eyes and see that they are going to do something with this,” Votruba said.

After his divorce and sending his kids off to college, it seemed that Bob’s life was winding down, but it is really just beginning. He made it difficult to return back to his old life simply because he has nothing to return to – other than friends.

Everything he owned has either been given away or sold. He said all he owns – clothes, family photographs and food – is on the bus. Another important possession is his dog.

“He is the star,” Bob said, smiling at his 2-year-old Boston Terrier, Bogart.

His hope for the future outweighs his concern for it, he said

While holding Bogart in his lap, Bob leaned forward and said, “The cool part is you don’t know what’s happening from this. You don’t know a kid is not doing something.”