Scott Wagner (rear) and Robert Barnette (middle) jumped in Barnette’s truck and drove to help Shannon Currier (front), who got a flat tire on her way to MATS earlier this year.Two truck drivers have been recognized as Highway Angels by the Truckload Carriers Association for their willingness to drive nearly an hour to rescue a stranded colleague on the side of a busy highway.
On March 27, Shannon Currier, director of philanthropy and development for the St. Christopher Truckers Relief Fund, was on her way to the Mid-America Trucking Show in Louisville, Kentucky, when she ran over something in the road and got a flat tire. She called her husband to get their AAA information but found out the coverage had lapsed.
Currier then called Scott Wagner, a truck driver for Spartan Direct who is also a driver ambassador for SCF. Wagner grabbed a buddy, Robert Barnette, an owner-operator with Swift Transportation, and the two jumped in Barnette’s truck and drove 38 miles to help Currier.
“Scott and Robert knew the danger I was in being a female out there alone,” Currier said. “I don’t know how long I would have had to sit on the side of the road waiting for help or waiting for our AAA to be reinstated and then for a driver to come help me.”
Currier said Wagner was able to quickly change the tire and put on the spare donut tire, then the two truckers followed Currier to a nearby Walmart so she could buy a new tire. “They stayed with me for another two hours while we waited for the new tire,” she said.
For their willingness to help, TCA presented both Wagner and Barnette with a certificate, patch, lapel pin and truck decals. Their employers also received certificates acknowledging their drivers as Highway Angels. EpicVue sponsors the TCA Highway Angel program.
