This week, September 10-16th, is Truck Driver Appreciation Week, an event we celebrate annually. The work of truck drivers has been featured in the news recently as deadly hurricanes batter the coasts and wildfires rage in the West.
In the affected areas, folks are reminded of what truckers do for us, as shelves go bare weeks before a weather event. (This photo was taken in Texas where the grocery store shelves were bare – except for the soy meat!)
We’ve all lived through preparation for bad weather, and it seems like the trucks can’t come fast enough. Water, milk, bread, batteries, and other essentials fly off shelves, causing shipments to divert to meet increased need. Possible evacuations and emergency travel can cause spikes in gas prices as drivers all rush to fill up their tanks at once. Wildfires can clear acres of land that farmers use for feeding livestock, leaving animals hungry.
In Michigan, a group of truck drivers 
worked their transportation magic to bring hay and other supplies to hungry animals whose homes in Texas and Kansas had been devastated by wildfires this past March. As farmers and their flocks suffered, these kindhearted truck drivers put together a convoy of 45-50 semi trucks delivering hay, feed, and milk replacement. Now that’s something to appreciate!
It’s one heck of a week for appreciating truckers. Deliveries don’t stop when the winds pick up or when the air is thick with smoke and haze, so between Harvey, Irma and forest fires, drivers have had their work cut out for them.
One reporter, Brandi Smith, and her cameraman, Mario Sandoval, were able to show a Houston truck driver the ultimate appreciation during Hurricane Harvey . While reporting on flooding on Texas’s Beltway 8, they spotted a flooded truck with a man trapped inside the cab. Flagging down a sheriff deputy’s air boat, they got help
for the stranded truck driver, effectively saving his life!
This week, be sure to follow our Facebook page – we’ll be spotlighting a few of our favorite truck drivers. Winners will receive a $25 gift card to the restaurant of their choice, and some special Matchmaker Logistics swag. How will you be showing your appreciation for truck drivers this week? I’d love to hear your ideas.
Fuel for Thought,
~Bob
