In The News
Seven unsung professional drivers named Citizen Driver Award winners at MATS
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Seven unsung heroes, good community citizens and road veterans were named as the 2016 Citizen Driver Award winners April 1 by TravelCenters of America LLC here at the Mid-America Trucking Show.
The annual Citizen Driver Award series was started by TA Petro in 2013 to honor hard-working professional truck drivers and to shine a public spotlight on these largely unknown and under-appreciated men and women.
The third annual honorees were announced at MATS during a Citizen Driver luncheon ceremony. To be chosen, drivers must go through a lengthy and detailed vetting process, with judges looking not only at their driving records but at their community service work as well.
By demonstrating their good citizenship, safety, community involvement and leadership, they are hailed as outstanding examples of professional drivers and the trucking industry.
To highlight their service hauling the nation's freight and to their communities, each winner annually gets to choose the TA or Petro they would like to have renamed in their honor.
Citizen Drivers also received a Citizen Driver Honoree package from TA Petro.
The winners are:
- Jon Osburn — TA Boise, Idaho, "J.D. Doc Osburn Travel Center"
- Bill Underwood —TA Greenwood, Louisiana, "Bill Underwood Travel Center"
- Michael Eugene Zanella — TA Hebron, Ohio, "Michael Eugene Zanella Travel Center"
- Bill Ater Jr. — Petro Carl's Corner, Texas, "Bill Ater Jr. Stopping Center"
- Mary "Candy" Bass — TA Nashville, Tennessee, "Candy Bass Travel Center"
- Denis Litalien — TA Greenland, New Hampshire, "Denis Litalien Travel Center," and
- Bill and Robyn Taylor — TA Southington, Connecticut, "Bill and Robyn Taylor Travel Center."
With these winners, there now are 19 TA or Petro Stopping Centers locations across the country renamed to honor professional truck drivers.
"The Citizen Driver program is a truly special and honorable recognition of the exemplary individuals within the trucking industry who pride themselves on hard work and true leadership skills. We are extremely proud of all our honorees and want to identify the drivers that the trucking industry is proud to count among their own and give their stories a chance to be heard," said Tom O'Brien, President and CEO of TA Petro.
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