Born: 1937 (circa), United States
Died: NA
Country most active: United States
Also known as: Estella Mims
The following is excerpted from Infinite Women founder Allison Tyra’s book The View from the Hill: Women Who Made Their Mark After 40.
Estella Mims Pyfrom was 72 when, in 2009, she founded Estella’s Brilliant Bus with $900,000 of her retirement savings. The mobile learning lab was equipped with more than a dozen computers and travels to underserved and under-resourced Florida communities, providing residents with access to technology and education. Working with schools, businesses and community organizations, the bus has served more than 500,000 children, families and senior citizens and also supports food pantries because, as the organization’s website says, “Estella’s Brilliant Bus understands that a hungry stomach is not conducive to learning or well-being.”
One of seven children of migrant workers, neither of whom had more than fourth-grade education, Pyfrom grew up when school segregation still impacted African-American children like her and her siblings. She went on to work for the Palm Beach County School District as a teacher and guidance counselor for almost 50 years before retiring – only to return two years later. She was also a dedicated community activist who worked for a variety of causes over the years, including volunteering as a Guardian Ad Litem, advocating for neglected and abused children. When she piloted a tutoring program for children experiencing housing insecurity, she went above and beyond as usual, enlisting college students to help the parents search for jobs and housing. She left the district in 2008 to pursue the project that would become Estella’s Brilliant Bus.