Born in 1957, Max Bundy was one of five boys. He grew up in Rome along the Illinois River. He went to Mossville Grade School and then graduated from IVC High School in 1975.

During his high school years, he met a cute underclassman, Joann Garza. They dated until Joann graduated from high school and then married in 1978. They have three children—Drew who is 45, Josh 42, and Erin 38. Drew works in Peoria at Epic with people with disabilities, Josh and his wife are head softball coaches at Canton High School, and Erin teaches and is an assistant softball coach at Gibson City High School. Max and Joann have been married 46 years.

Max’s first job after high school was in Chillicothe at Gray’s Auto Parts. After a few years, he got a job at Caterpillar, but during one of the Caterpillar strikes when he was laid off, John Gray asked him to manage the auto parts store in Lacon and he accepted.

Max, who always loved baseball, started coaching little league when he was 21 years old before he had any kids of his own. He loved working with the kids and watching them learn. When his firstborn, Drew, and then Josh were old enough to play ball he coached their baseball teams. Then when Erin was old enough she wanted to play ball too, so he began coaching girls’ softball. 

In 1998, Mossville School was hiring a full-time custodian, and Max jumped at the chance to work among all the kids. The kids all love “Mr. Max.” He would always talk and kid around with them trying to get a smile out of them each day. Max says he knows not all kids have a good home life, so if he can brighten each child’s day by putting a smile on their face, then that’s what he wants to do. Max worked at Mossville School for 14 years until they moved him to South School, where he has worked for the past 12 years.

Mr. Shaun Grant, the principal at South school, had this to say about Max, “Max is a very hard worker, he comes in before school and after and even on the weekends to ensure that everything gets done. As a principal, I always can count on him that he is doing what is best for South School. He always interacts great with the kids, and the kids truly enjoy being in his company. They look up to him, not only with his tall stature but also as a great person.”

Max says he loves every minute when he’s at the school and says it’s the best job he could ask for. He loves working with the staff, and greeting the kids each morning. “Seeing all those little faces light up is all I need to make my day,” says Max.

Max began coaching girls’ softball with IVC head softball coach, Mike Berchtold. Over the years Mike and he became best friends, as they both had a genuine love for the game and the kids. They coached the Blue Devils girls traveling team and coached the girls at IVC. Mike was the head coach and Max his assistant coach until Mike suddenly died from a heart attack. Max was crushed at the death of his best friend, but he knew Mike would want him to go on and take his place as head coach at IVC. Max just this summer resigned from coaching after their regional winning team ended their season by beating Canton (His son and daughter-in-law’s team) in early June. Max loved coaching but he said his body and age were telling him it was time to hang up his glove. When he added up all the years, Max has been coaching baseball or softball for 46 years.

In 2022 Max received the very well-deserved Chet Coffey award for his caring and can-do attitude and his dedication to the IVC school district and their students. 

At the end of this school year, after working in the IVC school district for 26 years, Max will be retiring. We know all the kids will miss “Mr. Max” as they call him, and he will surely miss seeing all the kids each day. Asked what he plans to do when he retires he said, “I’m not sure of my plans, but I’ll probably go to a lot more ball games, and maybe pick up some kind of work a couple days a week.”

Max said his proudest accomplishment he thought was marrying Joann, the love of his life, and having three great kids who have followed in his footsteps helping kids and adults reach their goals.

Thank you Max for all the countless hours you have put into our kids over the years. They will never forget you, or the love and dedication you showed them.