We’ve been pretty busy the past two weeks wiping the egg off our faces. In the last edition of the e-Report we ran the following headline:

Joseph Rich Awarded Trucker Buddy of the Month for August 2011

Unfortunately, we placed the wrong article underneath that headline. So, in order to make things right, we are trying it one more time. (Proofreader: Please do your job this time!)

Joseph Rich Awarded Trucker Buddy of the Month for August 2011

Donna O’Connell, a 5th grade teacher at Wadding River Elementary School in Wading River, NY, explains why she nominated Joe Rich. “I’m nominating, Mr. Joseph Rich, for Trucker Buddy of the Month. Mr. Rich has been extremely thoughtful, generous and kind to each and every one of my students. At least once a month he individually writes to each child in my class. My students enjoy receiving the "class envelope" filled with letters. Every one waits patiently for his/her letter to be passed out.

Mr. Joe sends weekly traveling reports, where we track him on a United States map. We calculate the distance and time he travels. My class has learned so much in geography and math with the help of Mr. Joe and the Trucker Buddy Program.”

Joe, a driver for Wayne Dalton Transportation, took some time out from his busy schedule this year to make a class visit. The students were so excited to finally meet him and Joe gave a speech about truck safety to each fifth-grade class and even allowed the students to climb aboard and take a look inside the truck's cabin. They were surprised to see a bed, refrigerator and even a TV. Mrs. O’Connell and her class are extremely grateful for the thoughtfulness Joe demonstrates to the class. He traveled all the way from Canton, Ohio just to meet my class and they were very impressed. Something they never expected to happen.

“I have been involved in the Trucker Buddy Program for three years now. I have had the pleasure of working with Mr. Joe for these three years and look forward to a fourth. Because of his kind and thoughtful ways, I recommend that Mr. Joseph Rich be chosen as your next Trucker Buddy of the Month” says Mrs. O’Connell.

Some students wrote to express their appreciation for their “Mr. Joe.”

“I would like to recommend Mr. Joe for the Trucker Buddy of the Month because he sends us gifts and answers all our questions.  He always writes us back too.  I think he would make a perfect winner.”

“I would like to recommend Mr. Joe as the Trucker Buddy of the Month.  He is very kind in his letters that he sends us and he is very cool.”

“Mr. Joe is very nice and he writes to everyone in the class and gives us gifts for no reason at all.  I think Mr. Joe is the best Trucker Buddy and should be the Trucker Buddy of the Month.”

“I would like to recommend Mr. Joe because he always writes back to everybody individually through our teacher.  In my opinion he is very generous and gives us gifts from his company.”

And, just to make things righter, (see what we mean about proofreading) here is the correct title (along with the correct copy) for that article. 

Tom Byl Awarded Trucker Buddy of the Month for September 2011

The fifth grade class of Good Shepherd Catholic School in Santa Cruz nominates Tom Byl a driver for Walmart Transportation for the honor of Trucker Buddy Driver of the Month.

The class teacher, Ms. Cathie Gabrio said, “Mr. Byl has sent the class beautiful postcards from California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and Oregon. On the postcards, he has shared his adventures and activities during the months of September 2010 through May 2011. In addition to the cities he has visited, Mr. Byl has shared the wildlife and scenic beauty of the territory.

Along with the postcards, Mr. Byl has taken the time to write semi-monthly 3-5 page letters to answers in the class. He adividual questions, often directing them to the student asking. The students are always thrilled when Mr. Byl addresses them by name in his letter. Mr. Byl has shared with the class stories about his family, his home, and his hobbies.”

The class has been amazed with the distance Mr. Byl travels each week! They have calculated how many miles he drives in a week, month, and year and how much it costs to fill the truck up with fuel. They have enjoyed hearing about his truck and look forward to seeing it on his visit to school.

“Friday is our Trucker Buddy day. It usually begins with me sharing the letter and postcard(s) received. Students pass the postcard around while the teacher reads the letter aloud.

Students then take the time to write to Mr. Byl about what they have been doing and Mr. Byl responds with sensitivity and care. Mr. Byl is an important part of our Fifth Grade experience this year and the class and I feel he should be honored with the Trucker Buddy Driver of the Month Award. ”

Some students sent letters to express the reasons why Tom Byl should be selected:

“Mr. Byl sends us long letters. These letters are in detail. He answers our questions. When we read his letters we understand what he is saying.  We are so thankful we sent him some decorative cards.”

“Mr. Byl loves his job.  He has been working for Walmart for a long time.  He loves many of his friends he has made and is always prepared to work and is great at his job.”

“Mr. Byl is a wonderful guy with a wacky personality.  His moustache is super cool.  He travels a lot and every time he goes somewhere he sends us a post card or letter.  He has become a friend.”

“He always starts his letters with “Hi Kiddos!”  I like that. Whenever he writes he goes into details and the letters can be three pages long which means he puts a lot of thought into them.”

“Mr. Byl is so generous that he answers many of our questions and always has the patience to answer in such a way that we can understand.  He tells us about the places he’s been and the things he’s seen.”

And, to make things rightest, (Proofreader - are you awake?) here is the latest Trucker Buddy of the Month announcement.

David Kuklewicz Awarded Trucker Buddy of the Month for October 2011

Deborah Jagow Wynes, a Special Education Teacher at Barker Junior/Senior High School in Barker, New York, has nominated David Kuklewicz for Trucker Buddy of the Month.  Although he has only been with this school as their Trucker Buddy a short time, his genuine, caring attitude, exciting ideas, sense of humor and thoughtfulness has been an outstanding addition to the classroom curriculum.  As a special education teacher in a rural Middle School Life Skills class, Ms. Wynes  is always seeking new and interesting ways to teach her students appropriate social skills, provide them with information about the world they live in and how things work.

“David has done an exceptional job by corresponding with my students and me often and regularly via post cards, emails, classroom visits (3 total) and texting.   With David's help, I have been able to teach my students important concepts about math, geography, writing, social skills and the transportation of goods and manufacturing. Listed below are some of the remarkable contributions David has made to our class.

● 3 classroom visits (his terminal is more than 300 miles from our school) which always include a math or geography lesson

● Mailed several age-appropriate post cards with questions and prompts to encourage my students to learn how to use reference materials to locate information

● Sent a package of all the materials needed, including pure maple syrup from his home town, for students to make a pancake breakfast with a descriptive list of where products were manufactured.

● Collaborated with several of his customers and terminal manager to send additional information to students about railroads and manufacturing.

● Fostered caring, positive relationships with all of my students and demonstrates a personal interest in their academic growth and development.

These are only a few examples of how David has provided interesting and authentic learning opportunities for my students.   My students have also written you letters briefly telling what their favorite memory has been this past year.   In addition, my principal and special education administrator have also participated in David's classroom visits and observed some of the lessons I have created with David's help and have been highly impressed with David's year-long contributions and his ability to interact and connect with my very special students. We are so appreciative David has agreed to continue as our Trucker Buddy next year and for the Trucker Buddy program” said Ms. Wynes.

David makes learning should be enjoyable and meaningful and has been an exemplary role model to his class by demonstrating the importance of learning, and showing them how math and general knowledge applies to real life situations.   Ms. Wynes – “Simply said, David and the Trucker Buddy Program is the whole package.” 

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Our sincere apologies to the Trucker Buddies and their classrooms and to Trucker Buddy International.

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