Trucker Buddy Recognizes Outstanding Driver John Haley
Birmingham, AL… John Haley, a driver for Oakley Transportation, has been nominated and named an Outstanding Trucker Buddy by his teacher, Linda Johnson of Sunset School in Oak View, Calif., John Haley, “Trucker Buddy John,” has been a Trucker Buddy for many years, and is considered a shining example of what the program is all about.
Here is what Johnson had to say
about Trucker Buddy John in her nomination:
“I have been part of the
Trucker Buddy program for almost 18 years and had three Trucker Buddies before
moving to California four years ago. John Haley has been paired with my
fifth-grade class since 2014. I had always raved about my previous buddies, and
with each new match, I always thought that I had ‘the best one.’ After the
first few months of being matched with John Haley, I realized that my idea of
‘the best one’ was falling way short of what ‘the best one’ actually is! John
Haley, without a doubt, is the best Trucker Buddy a class could ever wish for!”
According to Johnson, Trucker
Buddy John starts each year by getting to know the class, and exchanging many
letters. In each letter, Trucker Buddy John teaches the students about himself,
his family, his career, the places he travels, and the history of different
places in our country. “With each word, John really knows how to connect with
the students to get them interested in the things he has to say,” Johnson
wrote. “He uses his sense of humor, as well as his compassion, to reach out to
the kids.
A few months into each school
year, Trucker Buddy John starts writing individual postcards to the students.
Johnson says that Trucker Buddy John responds to students’ individual stories
and makes comments about the parts of their lives they have shared with him.
“And the writing he does on a postcard is not the typical writing; he prints
very small, so that he can write more and respond to more of what the
individual students wrote to him,” Johnson wrote. “Each card is personalized in
a way that makes every child feel special with each mail delivery. There are
some days when we receive up to 12 postcards at a time!”
Johnson says that each card
includes the name of the city Trucker Buddy John is in as well as the state
capital, so the class is able to practice their states and capitals, which is a
standard in fifth grade. “Not a week goes by that we do not receive mail from
John at least two or three times. The students look forward to the mail
delivery, and with each announcement that we have cards from John, the class
erupts into cheers!” Johnson said.
Trucker Buddy International is
proud to name John Haley an Outstanding Trucker Buddy, and grateful for his
many years of service in the community. John will be honored at the 2019 Great
American Truck Show.
Trucker Buddy International, an
independent, non-profit 501(c) (3) organization, often called the number one
trucking image campaign in North America, has helped educate schoolchildren and
introduce educators to the trucking industry. This gives them the world
through the eyes of a professional truck driver. The Trucker Buddy
program helps to educate and mentor schoolchildren via a pen pal relationship
between professional truck drivers and children in grades K-8 as supervised by
their teachers.
After an extensive screening
process, the professional truck drivers are matched with a class and as
directed by the teacher, drivers share news about their travels with their
class. Students write letters and send pictures to their drivers. Students'
skills in reading, writing, geography, mathematics, social studies, and history
are enhanced and learning is made fun.
Since 1992, Trucker Buddy
International has helped educate over a million schoolchildren and introduced
them to caring, compassionate men and women, professional truck drivers.
The on-going success of the program is due to driver volunteers, participating
teachers and the contributions of sponsors. There is no cost to the
drivers or teachers to participate in the program. The Trucker Buddy program is
funded entirely by sponsorships and donations.