Ronnie Mills – From the highway to the sideline

Although he has never hesitated to support the adults in our community, Ronnie Mills has been a figurehead here because of his commitment to support local children. 
As a school board member for more than 20 years — and a volunteer at sporting events for even longer — Mills is a logical choice for several people in the community to be the NLJ’s Person of the Year. 
According to Weston County School District No. 1 Board Chairman John Riesland, Mills graduated from Newcastle High School in 1958 before marrying his wife and joining the Navy for three years. Once he returned home, he worked at the family truck and bus maintenance business that is now operated with the help of one of his two sons. 
Mills now owns the business, and although his time on the school board and as a volunteer has finally come to an end, his many accomplishments are remembered by his son Craig, who worked alongside him for many years at Newcastle Equipment. 
“I don’t even know where to start. …  he is very humble by nature,” Craig said. “He doesn’t like a lot of attention, but he’s always been focused on giving back to the community and particularly the school district.” 
The one-time transportation director for the district was just as well known for taking on smaller duties, such as driving a bus when needed. According to Riesland, Mills began driving activity buses in 1968 and continued doing so for over 30 years until he was elected to join the school board. 
In addition to driving activity buses, Mills helped keep scores for various Newcastle High School sports and could often be found on the sidelines of games both in town and away. According to Riesland, Mills was one person who knew all the names of the athletes and coaches in northeast Wyoming, and everyone knew who he was. 
“That legacy of support and commitment to the youth of Weston County is what people for years to come are going to remember him for,” Craig said. 
Riesland also recalled Mills’ dedication to the children of the community stating that Mills always said “they are all my kids.” 
“That was one thing that I dearly admired about Ron, that he always said that,” Riesland said. “He always lived up to what does this do for kids. That is the way he voted on this board, acted in the community and benefited this board.” 
The Newcastle native served a total of 22 years on the board. He had been board clerk from 2004 until his retirement in 2022, something that Riesland thought may be a record. In 2014, Mills was inducted into the Newcastle High School Hall of Fame for his dedication to the school and community that he has always called home. 
Mills’ contributions were recognized beyond his own community when he received the Champion of Education Award from the Wyoming School Boards Association recently, and while Ron has been praised over the years by his family — who obviously think of him as a very deserving candidate — other members of the community agree. 
The longtime board clerk was nominated for the award by those he served with. Riesland said that trustee Tom Wright was the one that did the “leg” work to get Mills’ approved for the award, which was done unanimously. 
Tina Chick, a past Chairman of the school board he served on, thinks that Mills’ character and commitment to the community goes beyond him just deserving the honor of Person of the Year. 
“Ronnie has been involved in sports since I can remember, and he’s been driving the bus since back when I was in school,” she said. She was specifically impressed by his ability to remember every kid by name and have a personal connection with them.
“He also helps out at all the sporting events, like keeping books and doing the chain gang for the Dogie football team,” Chick said. “He’s always been helping in one capacity or another, and most of it deals with the kids. He is the absolute nicest person you’ll ever meet, truly everything he does is for the kids. He always asks, ‘What does this do for kids,’ or makes the statement, ‘This should be for the kids.’ He is truly just a genuinely nice person, and he does everything he can to help.”