After decades of selfless service to Montgomery County, Isobel Arvin has relocated to Monroe County to be near her son and his family.
In 1961, Arvin and her husband, Dr. Charles Arvin, began a long and faithful commitment to education in the Crawfordsville Community School Corporation.
Affectionately known to her students as “Mrs. A,” over the years, she taught children in all grades from kindergarten to sixth grade. She was instrumental in the beginning of the sixth and later fifth grade camping trip to McCormick’s Creek, a highlight for many Crawfordsville students.
She worked with teachers from other school corporations to initiate Pioneer Days for fourth grade students.
Arvin was one of the first teachers to provide appropriate education to high ability students.
She developed a close relationship with an Amish family, the Grabers from Grabel, Indiana and began an overnight excursion into a world that still lived an 1800’s life, a once in a lifetime experience for students and some of their family members. Over the years, Arvin utilized many methods to experience history, not just read about it. After more than four decades of service in education, Arvin retired.
But still, she was most interested in service to her community.
She served on the Crawfordsville Disdrict Public Library Board of Trustees for 16 years and was instrumental in building the new library. She volunteered many hours at the Wesley Thrift Shop. She was on the board of the Christian Nursing Service. And for the last 25 years, she has registered clients for the Meals on Wheels program in Crawfordsville. Her duties included taking client information, communicating with other administrators and maintaining a data base of the clients. She did this into her 91st year of life.
“I have truly loved the years I have been involved,” she said. “It has given me purpose in my retirement years.”
Arvin is an inspiration to us all, to be an active, vital part of Montgomery County.
To honor her contribution to the community, Bill Doemel has launched a fund to benefit clients of Meals on Wheels. If you would like to contribute, send to: Meals on Wheels, c/o Gary Stull, 2428 W. Winslow Drive, Crawfordsville IN 47933. Checks should be made to the Montgomery County Free Clinic (MCFC) and on the memo line place MOW: Isobel.
Arvin would love to hear from her former students, their families and her friends in Crawfordsville. Send a note or card to: Isobel Arvin, Meadowood Retirement Community, 2455 Tamarack Trail, Apartment 219, Bloomington, IN 47408.
