OOIDA on the Road – June 2024
The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association wouldn’t exist without its members.
Those members are small-business truckers just like you who want to do their job safely while earning a strong income for themselves and their families.
Of course, OOIDA is working on its members’ behalf to make those goals a reality. The Association employs a staff of lobbyists in Washington, D.C., to push back against the policies that will harm small-business truckers while also promoting policies that will make its members more successful.
Identifying which policies are good and which ones are bad roots back to the membership itself.
OOIDA can’t properly represent its members without strong feedback regarding what truckers are facing.
Marty Ellis, driver for OOIDA’s tour truck, travels around the nation to get this feedback directly from the men and women the Association represents.
Be sure to check out The Spirit’s calendar. If you’re going to be in the area, stop by to say hi and to share your thoughts. If you’re not a member, it’s a perfect time to become one.
Below are several members who recently made a stop at The Spirit.
Thomas Kerekes, a life member from Warrensburg, Mo., stopped at The Spirit in recent months. He immigrated from Europe in the early 1990s and originally joined OOIDA in 2014. His 2017 Western Star 5700XE has a custom sleeper that measures about 148 inches long.
Life member David Drake Sr., 1494797, by his truck at a stop in Beaumont, Texas
David Drake Sr., who is from Ohio, visited The Spirit at the Petro in Beaumont, Texas. He became an OOIDA member in 2021 and recently upgraded to life member status. He hauls chemicals in his tank trailer. Drake refers to his 1999 International 9400 Eagle with over 3.2 million miles as the “Coyote Killer” after an unfortunate run-in with the four-legged creature.
Damien Cerny, an OOIDA member from Texas, stopped at The Spirit in Vero Beach, Fla. He has a family background in trucking and has been a member since 2016. He drives a blue 2021 Kenworth W990.
Robert Thompson, a life member, recently visited OOIDA’s headquarters in Grain Valley, Mo. He has been an entertainment hauler with Clark Transfer for about 17 years. Accompanied by his furry friends, Lucy and Bandit, he’s been hauling for the Broadway musical “Jagged Little Pill.” LL