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Professional truckers need respect they've already earned, says WIT speaker at MATS

LOUISVILLE, Ky. : The Women In Trucking (WIT) Association held its third annual Salute to Women Behind the Wheel at the Mid-America Trucking Show here March 24 celebrating the accomplishments of 211 female professional drivers with a combined total of over 200 million safe driving miles.

Joyce Brenny, president of Brenny Transportation Inc. and Brenny Specialized Inc. of St. Cloud, Minn., addressed the audience of approximately 800 which included drivers, their families and members of the association.  She called the drivers heroes and thanked them for their dedication to safe driving.  Brenny's passion is to elevate the image of the professional driver, “I want professional truck drivers to get the respect they have already earned, I said already earned!”

The audience cheered and the enthusiasm was similar to that of a rally!  Women In Trucking's President/CEO, Ellen Voie, thanked the group and recapped the organizations accomplishments from the past year.  Voie also gave them a glimpse into future goals and introduced them to the event sponsors, the group's board members and the driver advisory committee.

Brenny assisted in congratulating each woman who had achieved safe driving records.  The group included 67 women who had driven one million accident free miles, 36 who had reached two million safe driving miles, fifteen with three million mile records and seven women who had attained four million safe driving miles during their careers.

Those seven women were given a standing ovation by the audience and a few were so overwhelmed they shed tears of joy in response to the acknowledgement.

Following the award presentation, the women posed for a group photo and then dispersed in their red shirts, carrying goodie bags filled with gifts from the event sponsors. Gold Sponsors were Frito-Lay and Walmart Transportation. Silver Sponsors are:  U.S. Xpress Inc. and Volvo Trucks. Bronze Sponsors are:  McGriff, Seibels, & Williams, Inc. and Ryder System Inc. Copper Sponsors are:  FedEx Freight, J. J. Keller & Associates Inc., Owner-Operator DIRECT, Pitt Ohio, Rand McNally, Trucker Charity Inc., and UPS Freight. Nickel Sponsors are:  A Voice 4 U, Airtab, Anatabloc, Brenny Transportation Inc. & Brenny Specialized Inc., J.B. Hunt, Rolling Strong, and Schneider National Inc.

Women In Trucking was established to encourage the employment of women in the trucking industry, promote their accomplishments and minimize obstacles faced by women working in the trucking industry.  

Membership is not limited to women, as sixteen percent of its members are men who support the mission.  Women In Trucking is supported by its members and the generous support of Gold Level Partners; Bendix, Frito-Lay North America , Great Dane Trailers, Hyundai Translead and Walmart.   For more information visit www.WomenInTrucking.org or call (888) 464-9482.

The Trucker staff can be reached to comment on this article at [email protected] .

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