It keeps coming. If you missed the feature on the trucking industry’s response to this spring’s horrendous series of devastating tornadoes in Truckers News‘ current issue by Caroline Taylor, click through this picture from the magazine (taken in the city of the magazine’s headquarters, Tuscaloosa, Ala.) for the full feature.
Since it was written, various other companies have teamed up to offer various forms of aid, including Shell Oil Co. in Joplin, Mo. Shell teamed up with Allied Oil and Supply to help distribute 420 cases of a Pennzoil-brand 2-cycle oil donated by Shell. This story about the effort, published July 1, noted that 100 cases remained at the time and that anyone in need of the product in Joplin should contact John Hilbert at (417) 623-4771, or visit Allied Oil & Supply, located at 5442 Highway 43 South, Joplin, Mo. 64804.
Finally, Navistar International donated a step van (pictured) to the Hale Empowerment and Revitalization Organization in Hale County, Ala. Alan Stegich, national service director for Navistar’s Workhorse custom products business unit, and Andrea Clay (left), Workhorse legal and consumer affairs manager, present the keys in this picture to HERO Executive Director Pam Dorr (center). HERO is heavily involved in rebuilding efforts in the wake of the devastating tornadoes that swept through the state of Alabama, where Navistar has significant operations.
“This donation is a small token of how Navistar and Workhorse are giving back to the areas where employees live and work,” said William Osborne, vice president, Custom Products, Navistar. “We are committed to ensuring the community succeeds in its rebuilding efforts.”
“The tornadoes here were quite damaging for our small area,” said Dorr. “We were not sure how to rebuild with this kind of devastation, but it is clear with this donation that we can begin getting the process moving along.”
“When I shared with Pam what our intentions were, she was almost crying on the phone,” said Clay. “Pam said they have never had such a generous donation— they always just had to piece trucks together. This will make a huge difference in hauling supplies back and forth for rebuilding homes.”
The donation of the vehicle is in addition to the $50,000 Navistar provided to the Governor’s Emergency Relief Fund (GERF), established by Alabama Governor Robert Bentley to help Alabama residents with unmet recovery needs. Donations to this fund will be used to relieve suffering caused by the spring storms. The fund, which is administered by the United Ways of Alabama, will operate on an ongoing basis to help Alabama residents who have exhausted all other avenues of disaster relief, such as FEMA, the American Red Cross, the Salvation Army and any other disaster relief programs.
Find more information about the GERF.