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safety of the commercial truck industry that govern how much time a driver the 2015-16
through programs that focus on educa- must take off between shifts. ArkAnsAs roAd teAm
tion, industry training, and increased “We spend our whole careers by aprIl CoolIdgE
enforcement, among other areas. It’s ourselves,” May said. “A lot of us are USA Truck, Van Buren
funded with the first $2 million collect- introverts. The drivers I enjoy helping daNNy fUllEr
ed annually from a 15 percent registra- most are the guys who have a lot to Con-way Freight, Jonesboro
tion fee increase for certain trucks. offer but are stressed about the public
lorEN HaTfIEld
The Arkansas Trucking speaking. I went through that.” ABF Freight, North Little Rock
Association’s two-year, $368,000 grant Getting past that stress himself was
funded O’Neal’s position, the Arkansas the hardest thing he ever did, May said. gary JaworSkI
Road Team, and the creation of a Share For him, his then-8-year-old daughter Walmart Transportation, Clarksville
the Road campaign, which Road Team made the difference: She insisted on robErT kEllEy
members will use in their presentations. helping him work on his speech, and Walmart Transportation, Searcy
made it fun rather than a chore. “Once gary marS
roAd teAm goAls I realized I should be enjoying it, I Walmart Transportation, Bentonville
The goal of the Arkansas Road looked at it differently,” he said. Tom mIllEr
Team is to talk about safety and the On the other hand, May has really USA Truck, Van Buren
importance of the trucking industry in valued the opportunities he’s gotten as larry rHEIN
a way that reinforces to the public that an America’s Road Team captain to par- FedEx Freight, Harrison
safety is a shared responsibility and that ticipate in various industry councils and mark rook
truck drivers are regular people. committees. FedEx Freight, Little Rock
“Sometimes drivers have their own “Often the rules are made by peo- arTHUr “oTTo” SCHmECkENbECHEr
language, and it doesn’t always reflect ple who haven’t sat behind the wheel ABF Freight, North Little Rock
positively on our industry,” said O’Neal, of a truck,” he said. “I can provide real-
walTEr J. STaNlEy
whose background includes stints at life, valuable, hands-on information.” ABF Freight, North Little Rock
FedEx Freight in Harrison, FedEx Ground For newly minted Arkansas captain
JErry wHITTENbUrg
in Pittsburgh, Pa. and prior service to the April Coolidge, the public speaking part Stallion Transportation Group, Beebe
Arkansas Trucking Association’s Safety of the job actually does come naturally.
Management Council and 40 Under 40 Coolidge was a real estate agent until
Council. “We don’t want that image three years ago, when she became a How does she make it work as a
of the industry to live on. We want the professional driver — just like her dad single mom?
guy who’s your next-door neighbor, who — working for Van Buren-based USA “Well, my son is 21,” she said. “I
you’d have over to your barbecue. We’re Truck. She’s instantly likeable and ebul- hope I’ve instilled in him the responsi-
not using that stereotypical derogatory lient, and it’s clear nerves will not be a bility to make good decisions.”
CB-driven language.” problem for her. What’s the hardest thing about
All of the Road Team members are “Being a driver on the road, I see so being on the road?
full-time truck drivers for Arkansas many things, so many mistakes being “To focus on being on the road
companies, and two of them have past made,” said Coolidge, who drives a dedi- with other drivers,” she said.
experience as America’s Road Team cap- cated route between Charlotte, N.C. What does she want the public to
tains. Their employers commit to allow- and Tampa, Fla. “It excited me to think know about truck drivers?
ing them a couple of days a month to I could be someone who could educate “I want to let the public know
participate in events and presentations. the public about how everyone could be how vital we are to everyday life,” she
At the recent orientation session, safe out on the highway.” said. “There’s not a thing people touch
Barna, May and fellow America’s Road During the orientation session, in their daily lives that hasn’t at some
Team Captain Ralph Garcia focused in May asked her a question she’ll most point sat on a truck.”
part on helping Road Team members definitely face as a member of the Road Later, she talked more about what
draw on their own experiences to craft Team: What’s it like out there for a she hopes to accomplish.
answers to common questions they’re woman driver? “I love to tell people what I do,” she
likely to encounter. Say, for example, “I’ve gotten a lot of positive rein- said. “They can’t believe it. It makes me
someone asks about the issue of sleep forcement on the road being a woman,” very proud as a woman to be as success-
apnea. May guided one Road Team she answered. “Women look out for ful as I am in a man’s world, so to speak.
member to talk about what he person- each other.” I’m very honored to represent women.”
ally does to make sure he’s well rested, She went on to answer a handful of
and to mention the federal safety rules other questions with ease: 

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