Five Good Things: Trucking industry gives back through driver heroism and community donations

ATA names five finalists for National Driver of the Year Award

The American Trucking Associations (ATA) recently unveiled the five professional truck driver finalists for the 2025 ATA National Driver of the Year Award.

The National Driver of the Year is selected from a pool of state Drivers of the Year submitted by ATA’s affiliated state trucking associations. The qualifications and achievements of each candidate are evaluated by a group of professional industry judges who narrow down the list of nominees to a select group of finalists. 

The finalists for 2025 are as follows:

• Steve Brand has been a professional driver for 36 years, including 29 years with FedEx Freight. Throughout his career, he has achieved more than 4.8 million accident-free miles. Brand is an active member of America’s Road Team and the FedEx Freight Road Team, serves as an ambassador for Truckers Against Trafficking (TAT), and was named the 2024 Ohio Driver of the Year.
• Don Carpenter has been a professional driver for 45 years, including the past 11 with Old Dominion Freight Line. Over the course of his career, he has driven more than 4.5 million accident-free miles. An Army veteran and active Truck Driving Championships competitor, Carpenter was honored as the 2024 Oklahoma Driver of the Year.
• Kevin Flick has been a professional driver for 37 years, including 22 years with Buchheit Logistics. Over the course of his career, he has accumulated more than 6.1 million accident-free miles. Flick is an 11-time member of the Missouri Trucking Association’s Chairman’s Safe Driver Club, a seven-time Missouri Trucking Association Driver of the Month, and the 2024 Missouri Driver of the Year.
• Williams Jones has been a professional driver for 51 years, including 29 years with Walmart Transportation. Throughout his career, he has accumulated more than seven million accident-free miles. Jones, the 2006 Walmart Driver of the Year, is a certified driver trainer and mentor to countless professional drivers. He was honored as the 2025 Kansas Driver of the Year.
• Duane Staveness has been a professional driver for 33 years, including 25 years with FedEx Freight. Over the course of his career, he has achieved more than 2.55 million accident-free miles. Staveness is a current member of the Wisconsin Road Team, a 25-year member of the Master Presidents Club for safe driving, and the 2018 NTDC 5-Axle National Champion. He was honored as the 2025 Wisconsin Driver of the Year.

The Safety Management Council Awards & Recognition Committee judges each video submission and selects a winner. The winner will be announced at ATA’s Safety, Security, and Human Resources National Conference and Exhibition, which will be held in Oklahoma City on April 1-3, 2026.

Averitt and Chattanooga Bakery deliver nearly 115,000 treats to service members across the Southeast

Averitt and Chattanooga Bakery again joined forces to support U.S. service members through the Patriotic Pies program, delivering nearly 115,000 MoonPies to several military and USO locations across the Southeast this year.

Through the program, Chattanooga Bakery provides its treats, while Averitt donates the transportation services needed to distribute them to bases and USO centers. This year’s deliveries reached service members at Fort Campbell, Fort Bragg, Fort Johnson, Fort Stewart, Camp Shelby, and several other USO locations across the Southeast.

“The Patriotic Pies program is a great way to show appreciation for the men and women who serve our country,” Barry Blakely, president and COO at Averitt, stated. “We are proud to play a role in supporting our troops and the communities where our associates live and work.”

Penske Logistics drivers honored for actions following crash in Indiana

The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) recently named Casey Ford and Dan Svec, professional drivers with Penske Logistics, as TCA Highway Angels for their quick thinking and actions at the scene of a crash in Dale, Indiana.

On February 11, Ford was traveling westbound on Highway 64 when he came upon a single-vehicle accident. The car had rolled onto its side and was smoking, with two women and a child trapped inside. Ford pulled his truck to the shoulder, called 911, and rushed toward the wreck. Almost simultaneously, fellow Penske driver Dan Svec also stopped to help.

“I almost cried right there because he stopped, because nobody else would,” Ford recalled.

Together, with the assistance of another motorist, the two drivers worked to free the occupants. Ford tended to the young boy, who appeared uninjured, while Svec helped pull the two women from the vehicle through a broken side window. One of the women appeared to have suffered a cut to her ankle. Thanks to their actions, all three passengers were safely removed before emergency crews arrived.

“I’m glad we could be there to help,” Ford said.

10,000 lb. of donated furniture and household items collected at a “Fill a Truck” event in Stow, Massachusetts 

On November 1, the public helped “Fill a Truck” at the Pompositticut Community Center in Stow, Massachusetts, with over 100 household items weighing 10,000 lb. for donation to Household Goods. As a result of this effort, Household Goods is able to provide a full range of donated furniture and household items to individuals in need throughout  Massachusetts, free of charge.

The event was organized and sponsored by Mark’s Moving & Storage, based in Westborough, Massachusetts, which is the official mover of Household Goods. In addition, Mark’s Moving & Storage provided a driver, support staff, and truck.

“Our company was delighted to help organize, promote, and staff this critical effort to gather new and used items that will help turn empty rooms into homes. The event was overwhelmingly successful, and we will use it as a template to hold similar events in the near future,” said Mark Silverman, founder of Mark’s Moving & Storage and Mark’s Northeastern Furniture Foundation, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to repurposing discarded furniture and providing for charities and individuals in need.

Transervice employees support Book Fairies’ mission to provide books and resources across Long Island and New York City 

For the seventh consecutive year, Transervice employees are supporting Book Fairies, a nonprofit that sources and redistributes books to under-resourced communities on Long Island and New York City, as well as internationally, to provide equitable opportunities for children to learn, grow, and thrive. Since 2012, Book Fairies has distributed 5,705,417 books that impact at-risk children. 

“Transervice is proud to have contributed thousands of books and literacy resources over the years to this astonishing record in support of local children living in Long Island and the five boroughs of New York City,” said Gregg Nierenberg, president & CEO.