The Heart of Trucking at GATS

When people in the trucking industry get together at events like the Great American Trucking Show (GATS), there are bound to be plenty of tall tales about life on the road, lots of shop talk about equipment and intense discussions (and probably some griping) about upcoming regulations.

And then there are those moments that expose the heart and compassion of the industry.  Truckers and trucking companies give so much of themselves to others in both time and money. Some of the attendees at GATS displayed that tendency to offer help to others in need.

AmCoach, the bus operated by Trucker Charity to help stranded drivers get home, was on display. The group has been around since 2009, and most of the people who operate and volunteer for them are truckers themselves. The charity was initially formed to help truckers facing tough times during Christmas, and really went into action when a trucking company went out of business and left its drivers high and dry in the midst of their deliveries. They rallied to bring them home, and have since helped many drivers who find themselves stranded due to medical or business reasons beyond their control.

Trucking Solutions Group brought a mobile mammogram unit for the second year in a row, and offered free breast cancer screenings to women without insurance. The group is made up of drivers who constantly work toward making life on the road better for truckers, and health is a big issue for them. In addition to the mammograms, the group sets up a health pavilion that offers various screening tests and health information for drivers.

St. Christopher Trucker Development Relief Fund (SCF) is also part of the Health Pavilion. The group was form to offer assistance to drivers who are struggling financially due to health issues — helping with medical bills, utilities, mortgage or rent payments and more — when a driver is off the road and not earning any income. On the first day of GATS, TA and Blue Tiger presented the group with $105,000 from a fundraising promotion that directed $10 from every Bluetooth Elite headset sold at TA locations. The National Association of Independent Truckers donated another $100,000.

GATS show organizers and a number of trucking businesses joined together to collect supplies — canned goods, clothing, bottled water and more —  for Louisiana flood victims at the trucking show. Families in the Baton Rouge area lost much of what they owned, including their homes, during devastating floods in the area.

And though it didn’t happen at GATS, Love’s Travel Stops announced that it was donating $25,000 to the Salvation Army for flood relief.