Happy Anniversary Leigha Rutan

Congratulations to Leigha Rutan on 5 years with JB Hunt.  Leigha is the Account Manager at Quaker Oats.

Leigha began her career as an Administrative Assistant at the Quaker Account while continuing her education.  From there Leigha was promoted to an Operations Supervisor and then Account Manager.  Leigha a very hard working and dedicated employee, consistently logging in while at home at nights and on the weekends to make sure our drivers and our customers are taken care of. 

 

We always get positive feedback from both our drivers and our customers on how great of a job Leigha does servicing the account.

Thank you Leigha and Congratulations!!! 

Happy Anniversary Justin Schloesser

 Justin Schloesser is celebrating his one year anniversary at JB Hunt!  

Justin is the Night Operations Supervisor at Limited Logistics in Reynoldsburg, OH. 

Justin came to us from The Ohio State University where he graduated in 2013. At OSU, Justin majored in History and received his BS. Justin also brings to us leadership skills from his miliary experience. 

In his free time, Justin enjoys shooting firearms and gets to the shooting range whenever he gets the chance. 

Congratulations Justin! 

Happy Anniversary Jimmy Verdon

 

Jimmy Verdon celebrates his one year anniversary with JB Hunt today. He is an OS atthe Home Depot Monroe. 

Prior to coming to JBHunt Jimmy played professional football for 5 years with the Saints, Bengals, Sea Devils NFL Europa and the Rough Riders CFL. He was also a college coach at Eastern Michigan for three years. 

Congratulations on your Anniversary!

Family Dollar Morehead Training Trailer

Family Dollar Morehead would like to give a HUGE Thanks to Jeff Holle, Dustin Hatfield and Anthony Warchol for coming to Family Dollar Morehead on Monday the 20th and Tuesday the 21st to work on building frames for the boxes for our Training Trailer!

We couldn't find or take the time from the account to get this project started and they graciously offered to come and help us out. Anthony was out there all day with them as well filling the boxes with gravel for weight while Jeff and Dustin built frames.  A special thanks to Carl Griffin, Brenda Hardin and Cliff Davis of Family Dollar for allowing us to use their shop to do our building in.

Ashley, Indiana and now Morehead, Kentucky have built a simulation training trailer for their new hire drivers. We used varying boxes in size to get the true concept of an actual trailer.  We added frames and weight to the boxes, FD allowed us to use some of their totes and we added various weights to them., Anthony bought cases of water and gallons of water to simulate other products, boxes heavy enough to equal cases of bleach and bags of gravel to simulate pet food. This will allow the new hires to actually see what it is like to throw freight before they actually get on the trainer trucks. 

We want to prepare our drivers as much as we can because this is such a physically demanding account. Whether it is Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall we face all the elements of nature with the cold, heat, humidity, rain, snow, etc. Having this training trailer is a huge advantage to our accounts. 

Again, Thank you Jeff, Dustin and Anthony for all your help!! 

Getting to Know - Mike Coleman - Toyota - Owensboro

Mike recently celebrated his one year anniversary with J.B. Hunt.

Mike has been driving with his CDL for a little over four years now. He takes great pride in what he does and has learned a lot in the past four years!

Mike lives in southwest Ohio and has three children. Two little boys, ages 9 and 7, and one little girl at age four. Mike says his little girl already has him wrapped around her finger. Mike is a big sports fan and is quick to talk sports as soon as he enters the office to get everyone’s take on the weekends events.  Mike says that being from Ohio he isn’t necessarily a Cavs fan; but he is a fan of whatever team Lebron is with. He was happy to see Cleveland win!

Happy Anniversary Brandon Oreglia!

Brandon celebrates his first anniversary with J.B. Hunt team 

He is a proud member of the Ohio Army National Guard and was deployed to Afghanistan in 2011 for a year. 

During Brandon's spare time he is raising his 3 year old son, Zane and enjoys watching/playing any kind of sport. 



Toyota Louisville Reaches 100 days Collision Free Days

Recently, our Toyota Louisville team reached 100 days collision free!!

This account runs 30 drivers with 53' flatbeds to both Laredo, TX to pick-up freight, as well as to the Northeast for dealership deliveries. 

Over the past several weeks the focus has been on Laredo pick-ups, which is a round trip 2,500 mile run for every driver on the fleet week in and week out! The past 100 days have accounted for over 825,000 collision free miles for the fleet! 

A big congratulations and thank you for the great work these 30 drivers have done over the past 3+ months!! 

Congratulations Ryan Odell!

Please join me in congratulating Ryan Odell as he has accepted an opportunity within the Intermodal division as an Opertions Ramp Manager in Pittsburgh, PA. 

Ryan began his career with J.B. Hunt in August of 2010 as an Operations Supervisor in KY. He transferred to PPG in Pittsburgh, PA where he has held various roles including Logistics Coordinator and most recent Accoung Manager over the PPG Regional fleets. 

Thank you for all of your time and hard work in Dedicated; we wish you the best in your new endeavor within the company!

Promotion Announcement - Nick Van Hooser - Toyota Louisville

Nick Van Hooser is a 2011 graduate of Western Kentucky University where he majored in Communications.  Nick started with Toyota team as a DMIT. He quickly moved to the Operations Supervisor position where he worked on-site in Owensboro, KY at Metalsa (Toyota’s Frame Manufacturer).  Nick relocated to Louisville, KY in 2013 to continue in the supervisor role with the Toyota team. 

He is currently enrolled at the University of Louisville where he will complete his Masters in Business Administration in August of this year. When he is not working or doing homework, Nick enjoys playing golf or riding his motorcycle.  Nick and his wife Leigh are expecting their first child in August.

In 2015 Nick was the point person on the Collaborative Transmission Backhaul project, this project was the winning submission for Toyota’s 2015 Carrier Kaizen Championship. This projected yielded Toyota over $75,000 in annual cost savings! Nick will now assume the role of Logistics Coordinator. In this new role he will be responsible for the transportation of over 1000 frames weekly, among various other responsibilities for Toyota as well. Nick is going to do great in his new position.

Congratulations Nick!   

Congratulations to Sheldon Williams!

Congratulations to Sheldon and Carolina Williams (Operations Supervisor -Toyota - Louisville) on the birth of their baby girl Amelia!

She was born on June 16th at 12:37 am in Louisville, KY. Amelia weighted 6 lbs, 14 oz, and she was 19 inches long. 

Carolina and Amelia are doing great!

Congratulations!

Welcome Ryan Edinger - Home Depot - Van Buren

Please join us in welcoming Ryan Edinger to the J.B. Hunt team!  Ryan relocated from California back to his hometown of Findlay, OH.

Ryan is a graduate of Bowling Green State University and is one of our Operations Supervisors at the Home Depot account in Van Buren, OH.  Ryan brings with him more than 4 years of transportation experience, that we will surely put to good use in Van Buren.

When Ryan isn't working, he loves to be outdoors, including camping.  

Welcome Aboard Ryan! 

Happy Anniversary Mike Varty!

Congratulations to Mike Varty  as today he celebrates 2 years with JB Hunt!  Mike is our Account Manager at Soft-Lite Windows in Streetsboro, OH.

We appreciate all your hard work Mike! 

Congratulations!

Happy Anniversary Keith Taylor!

Please join us in celebrating Keith Taylor's 1st Anniversary with JB Hunt!

We are proud to say he has stepped up in a huge way since joining the Home Depot account in Monroe this past February moving over from Family Dollar Ashley, IN. Keith has tackled a Home Depot surge as the yard manager and one of the most hectic in recent years operating 24 hour shuttle coverage and 4 total yards.

At the start of June, Keith stepped into a regional fleet manager role, and we are excited to see the direction he takes this most recent opportunity.

Congratulations Keith!

Happy Anniversary Dan Mays!

Dan Mays celebrates his first Anniversary with JB Hunt.  He is currently a Logistics Coordinator at The Home Depot Account in Monroe. 

Dan is a graduate of Marquette University, where he majored in supply chain management.

Dan is an avid golfer and a huge fan of Marquette basketball. Dan also enjoys camping and eating at local restaurants. 

Congratulations Dan!

CHEP Solon Mock DOT Safety Blitz

On 6/9/16, Chep Solon, OH held a MOCK DOT / yard safety blitz. 

Account Manager Adam Spannbauer was joined by Area Risk Manager Rich Schwartz, Regional Operations Manager Brian Tabor and Area Maintenance Manager John Dodson.

As a team they inspected every trailer on the yard along with the 5 tractors on the Chep Solon fleet. 

Rich Schwartz and Adam Spannbauer prepping for a long day of inspections

Adam Spannbauer and Brian Tabor talking with Chep Solon driver Bob Ritandaro

Rich Schwartz and Chep Solon driver Keith Lewis reviewing his truck's permit book

In addition, Adam Spannbauer manned the grill to ensure no one went hungry.  Great job by the Chep team ensuring their maintenance and safety cultures remain strong!

Promotion Announcement - Zach Mattingly - Account Manager - Toyota Louisville

Please join us in congratulating Zach Mattingly on his promotion to Account Manager of the Toyota Louisville Account.

Zach is a proud graduate of Western Kentucky University. After graduating in 2012 with his Bachelor's degree, he enrolled in the MBA program at WKU the very next year, earning his Masters in Business Administration/Management in 2013. He began his career with JB Hunt as a DMIT in Louisville, KY. In January of 2014 he promoted into the Logistics Coordinator role for Team Toyota.  

In that role Zach was an instrumental part of all of the teams success as well as contributing to multiple Toyota Carrier Kaizen Awards. The hard work of Zach along with the other members of Team Toyota led to account being awarded Strategic Logistics Partner of the Year for 2015 by Toyota. His talents have been recognized internally as well, for 2015 he was named the DCS Central Region Logistics Coordinator of the Year.

We hope that Zach brings the same hard work and success to his new role. 

2016 Adopt a Class Program

TODAY IS THE DAY! 2016 ADOPT-A-CLASS PROGRAM

Nominate your child or grandchild’s K-5 classroom for a chance to receive $1,000 worth of school supplies for our 2016 Adopt-a-Class program. We’re accepting entries from now until June 24th, 2016. Selected drivers will deliver the gifts in their truck and give a truck tour. Ten classes will be chosen and winners will be contacted in mid-July. Visit our driver blog (jbhunt.jobs/blog) to nominate and see the full rules and details.

Click Here for more information:  Adopt a class 

Central Region Driver of the Month for May 2016 - John Simmons

Congratulations to John Simmons for winning Central Region Driver of the Month for May.  John has been with JB Hunt 2 years, and is one of the original drivers that assisted in starting up the Armour Eckrich Account in Indianapolis.  Armour Eckrich is one of the more difficult accounts in the region.  Our drivers take a linehaul of refrigerated product out to a meeting point where they do a transload onto an Armour refrigerated box truck.  This takes a tremendous amount of coordination as well as relationship between both drivers making this switch.  This switch is subject to what is going on with the elements, thus these have been done in rain, sleet, and snow.  John Simmons has done a fantastic job at servicing this customer and going the extra mile in doing whatever is asked of him.  Congratulations John!

 

 

 

Below is the write-up from Account Manager John Morgan:

 

John has a fantastic relationship with his customers in the Pennsylvania and Ohio markets. John has received multiple compliments from Carmen Campbell, Route Supervisor and Brad Pruden, Route Supervisor. Both of these customer contacts have repeatedly said that our delivery business would not be the same without John.

This is a driver who has gone out of his way on numerous occasions to help the customer - most recently delivering a single pallet of frozen food to Tripi Foods in Buffalo, NY. This saved our customer a substantial amount of money and improved their own service with their customers.

 

John is the last remaining driver from startup and has been a loyal JB Hunt employee since he was hired in 2014. John is also currently serving as the account's driver trainer and has taught many of our new hires the process in which we perform the difficult truck to truck deliveries.

John has excellent MPG performance and almost never has any log issues. We can always count on John to log properly. When doing a TEAM inspection, my Operations Supervisor Will Johnson found nothing short of a neat and tidy truck.

We would additionally like to thank John for his 20+ years service in the military and look forward to many more years with him on the fleet!

 



Getting to Know - David Craig - Professional Driver - Toyota Owensboro

Nick Van Hooser (Logistics Coordinator) rode with David Craig (CRAD66) last week.

Dave has been driving for around 13 years.  Dave stays calm, cool, and collected when he is out on the road and is never in a hurry to get where he is going.

When he is not in the truck, you can find him at home cooking one of his signature meals or playing his Xbox.  Dave has a son who keeps him competitive in their Xbox games.  Dave recently downloaded a phone app where can login while his son is playing online and tamper with his games.  Dave ensured me it was all in good fun but parents are allowed to mess with their children.

Dave likes all things Ohio.  Dave is a huge Cincinnati Reds fan and Cleveland Browns fan.  Despite the Browns lackluster previous few seasons, Dave is hopeful and will be cheering them on regardless.

Prior to driving, Dave was a mortician and got his mortuary degree in Jeffersonville, IN at Mid America College of Mortuary.

Look Out, A Good Safety Culture is Contagious!!

Pulling up to our Southern States account in Cloverdale, VA Jeff Holle (Area Risk Manager) saw a man working on the brick wall that surround the offices of our customer. He had his wheelbarrow full of cement beside him. What was surprising he was wearing a JB Hunt safety vest.

When he walked into the office he asked the account manager Ben Hurt, are you letting one of your drivers fix that brick wall? Ben just smiled and said no. He is one of our customer's employee's. He explain that our customer noticed our drivers wearing their safety vest when working in the parking lot and asked if we had any extra's!

It is great when a customer notice's our drivers practicing safety, but it is just wonderful to see that our safety culture is contagious. Thank you to our drivers for your efforts to make our safety culture strong. Thank you to our account management, Ben Hurt and Hannah Church for leading the charge in making SAFETY FIRST. 

Getting to Know - Isaac Tonui - Professional Driver Home Depot Monroe

Tony Hale (Operations Supervisor) recently rode with Isaac Tonui.  Here is what he learned about Isaac:

He was born in Kenya, he migrated over in his thirties. He is a family centric man. He has 3 children ages; 6,3 & 1. The youngest being his only daughter. 

Mr. Tonui has been a truck driver since 2007 when he drove for Trans. America OTR. We shared many stories of the places and people he has experienced in his time driving. He says he has been to all 48 continental states.

In 2012 Isaac joined JB Hunt with our Intermodal division based out of Chicago. I asked him how he avoided critical events when encountering their famous grid-locked traffic. He simply stated that, “You learn when to go through the city, and when to stop and wait.” He points out that if he planned his days correctly he could completely avoid their rush hour."

Getting to Know - Roman Lavrishin - Professional Driver CHEP - Twinsburg

Adam Spannbauer recently rode with Roman Lavrishin.  He is what he learned about Roman:

Roman lives in Parma, OH with his wife, Iryna, 3-year old daughter, Nellia and 2-year old son, David. The whole family shares a passion for travelling around the county and world as well as staying heavily involved in their church youth group.

Prior to being married Roman went on many short term missionary trips including Haiti, Argentina, Ukraine and Europe. 

Let's Go Pens!!

Terri Knight ICS coordinator, Ellwood City Forge,  took her son(Eric) to game 5 last night in Pittsburgh hoping to see the Penguins clinch the Stanley Cup.

Consol Energy Center(Home to the Pittsburgh Penguins), had their 431st consecutive sellout on hand. Crowd totaled 18,680 people inside and there were an estimated 20,000 people outside watching the game on two big screens hoping to celebrate Pittsburgh's fourth Stanley Cup championship in downtown Pittsburgh which hasn't experienced a championship clinching home win in 56 years! The city and metropolis were buzzing like a hornets nest with people.

While the Penguins lost, Terri had a great time with her son and they both enjoyed a once in a lifetime experience. In addition, Jeremy Roenick came up to her son to talk to him (pictured below) prior to the start of the game. Pretty awesome stuff!  

  

Still two games left for the Penguins to try and secure its fourth championship in hockey.

Let's Go PENS! 

Happy Anniversary Elvis Sehic!

Happy Anniversary to Elvis Sehic as today marks his 3rd year JB Hunt!

Elvis is a graduate of The University of Indiana and began his career with JB Hunt as a DMIT in the Indianapolis Region.  From there, he was moved to Family Dollar in Ashley, IN to assist with that startup and is now the Account Manager at C&S Wholesale.

In his current role, Elvis is back in Indianapolis working on the CHEP Account.

Happy Anniversary Elvis!

Getting to Know - Allan Reynolds - Professional Driver Home Depot Monroe

Allan Reynolds - Professional Driver (Home Depot Monroe) and Jason Butler - Account Manager

Allan has been a professional driver for just over 20 years, up until 9 months ago he held his Class B license.

Allan spent 20 years driving a school bus or transporting passengers for city transportation and occasionally some national transportation.

Allan and his wife (who have been married for over 28+ years) have 8 children with the youngest getting ready to graduate from high school leaving the two of them alone for the first time in years.

  

Allan a former Home Depot employee, is also a proud Home Depot product fan and loves to spend his free time either at a Home Depot or at home working on home improvement projects, he also has made several deliveries to the former store where he worked and is liked by all his former co-workers. 

Happy Anniversary Rich Schwartz

Rich began his career in Operations, running several accounts in the region including CHEP Hamilton and Intigral. 

Rich currently serves as the Area Risk Manager for Northeast, OH and Western, PA and Family Dollar in Ashley, IN.

Rich is an avid Cleveland Cavaliers fan! 

 Happy Anniversary Rich!

Happy Anniversary Nicholas Nocheck!

Nicholas Nocheck was hired with JB Hunt on June 8, 2015. Nick was hired as a DMIT before coming to the Family Dollar account. We welcomed him with open arms. Nick graduated from Lehigh University in Bethlehem, Pa.

Nick has made his home in Kentucky and some of his favorite past times are playing with his Alaskan Huskie and fishing. In the evenings he likes to work out before going home.

Nick's girlfriend is from Spain so he plans on going abroad later this year. Nick likes the logistical side of the business and proves to be a great asset to the team.

We are proud to have him on the team and would like to wish him a happy 1st Anniversary with JB Hunt.

Happy Anniversary Alexandra Thompson!

Alexandra Thompson was hired with JB Hunt on June 8, 2015. Alex came to us from Lakeside Christian Academy as a 2nd grade teacher. All of her students adored her.

She has 3 children of her own, all girls, with Miss Timber Celeste being born on April 14th of this year. Alex is currently out on Maternity leave and all the drivers as well as all of us in the office are anticipating her return to work. Alex has a personality that everyone loves. She has a great rapport with not only her drivers but then entire fleet. Alex is a dedicated worker, her last day of work before going on Maternity leave was April 13th, the day before she gave birth!

She is a leader and everyone looks up to her. We are proud to have her on our team and would like to wish her a wonderful and happy 1st anniversary with JB Hunt.

Happy Anniversary Susan Mateo!

Happy Anniversary to Sue Mateo as today marks her 4th year anniversary with JB Hunt! 

Sue is currently our Operations Supervisor on the Soft-Lite Windows Account based out of Streetsboro.

 We appreciate all you do Sue!

Happy JBH-versary!

Getting to Know Dewey Gibson - Professional Driver - Armour Eckrich

Jonathan Morgan rode with Dewey Gibson on May 31st.  Here is what he learned:

Dewey has been driving since 2002 for various companies.  He started on the Armour Eckrich account in 2014, before taking a break from JB Hunt.  He has since come back in 2016.

He was in the Army for 8 years, and has been happily married for 7 years.  He has 4 children, and 6 grandchildren.

In his spare time, Dewey likes to fish and try out his substantial collection of firearms – which includes 54 hand guns and 12 rifles.  His favorite is his Colt .45.

Hunt's Hero - Kevin Stone - Professional Driver - Toyota Owensboro

As of today Kevin Stone is officially a member of the Toyota Owensboro team.

He has completed his company orientation, the 2 week Account specific Fork lift and Flatbed training and a two week ride along with Bruce Ashmore, one of our 2 Million Mile drivers.

Kevin is married to his wife Jennifer and has 5 children, Lance, twins Adision and Ashton, Samantha and Griffin.

Kevin is retired military serving in the Army, Marines and National Guard.

Left - Bruce Ashmore Right - Kevin Stone

This is what Bruce Ashmore said about Kevin:

When asked if I would train a new driver, I, at first thought I would pass. That is when

I was told that the driver, Kevin Stone, was a veteran and had served our country. I decided then

that if Kevin could give up his time to serve our great nation, that I could give up two weeks of my time to help a veteran.

                Kevin is a great driver, very quiet, but good behind the wheel.  I felt like I was overloading his brain with stuff I thought would be useful to make sure that he succeeded and made J.B Hunt look good on the road. He caught on very quickly; he may have had some hiccups (nothing major), but who of us doesn’t have to keep trying something to get good at it. I have been with J.B Hunt for 18.5 years and driving a truck for 39 years and there is stuff I am still learning; you have to be open for changes when you are in our profession. I believe that someday Kevin will be typing an article about his driver that he has trained.

                I am glad that I was given the opportunity to help Kevin feel confident to drive on his own. I hope he retains everything that I have passed on to him and keeps learning along the way. Someday, I believe that I will see Kevin in the J.B Hunt magazine for reaching a million miles with no accidents. I loved being able to give back to someone who defended my freedom and my families’ freedom. What J.B Hunt does for our countries veterans is a great thing, and I am proud to wear and support the J.B Hunt logo. 

Attached is an email he sent me over the weekend, great write-up, .along with a picture of them,
Bruce is on the left, Kevin on the right.

Welcome Kasey Wilson - Home Depot - Van Buren - Operations Supervisor

Welcome Kasey Wilson!

Please welcome Kasey Wilson to our J.B. Hunt family!  Kasey Wilson joins us after serving our country in the United States Army, where he served in Germany for five years.  Born and raised in Northwest Ohio, Kasey is currently an Operations Supervisor at The Home Depot account in Van Buren, Ohio.

He is a graduate from Bowling Green State University where he majored in Environmental Science, but has always wanted to be a part of the transportation industry.

Kasey is married, and has 3 beautiful daughters.  When he isn't hunting or fishing, he is spending quality time with his family. 

We are excited to have Kasey aboard the team.

Getting to Know - Jessica Dietrich - Professional Driver Intigral

Jessica Dietrich (DIEJ1) Professional Driver Intigral

Sam Marcotte (Account Manager, Intigral) rode with Jessica Dietrich on May 26.  Here is what he learned:

Jessica is one of my Local Class A drivers running at the Intigral Plant in Austintown, Ohio. Jessica is the youngest driver on the fleet but this does not say anything about the ability of her driving. She is one driver that you have no worries about getting the delivery made safely.

Jessica is the proud mother of her 2 year old daughter. She likes being able to spend time with her having weekends off and being able to have a schedule that works with her doctor’s appointments when they come up.

Jessica is happy that she stayed with JB Hunt after the Toys R US account closed down in Youngstown.

Happy Anniversary Tyler Moore!

Tyler Moore is celebrating his first anniversary with JBHunt today!

Tyler has been a great addition to the Monroe team over the past year. After promoting from DMIT to OS in October, he has set the bar high in Monroe with a very proactive approach to safety and compliance. Tyler has also covered for Matt Stark at Falcon Packaging on several occasions providing valuable and much needed on-site customer service.

Tyler recently became engaged to longtime girlfriend Jessica and is planning a wedding in June of 2017. 

We are excited to celebrate Tyler's 1 year anniversary with him and look forward to many more to come!

Happy Anniversary Oliver Skelton!

Oliver Skelton celebrates his 2nd Anniversary with JB Hunt.

Oliver is an Operations Supervisor at the Southern States location in Westfield, MA.

He started his career  with JB Hunt at the Pet Supplies Plus in Seymour, IN, then moving to help out with the Southern States account in Louisville , KY. This past April, Oliver moved again, this time to Massachusetts helping out with the start up operation there. He has been an integral part of the initial success for the Westfield location working closely with the new AM as well as the Southern States management team. His contribution of experience and training have made the transition seamless for the customer. 

In his spare time here in the Northeast Oliver has been to multiple sporting events including a Red Sox game and an Islanders hockey. He's planning a to visit the Basketball Hall of Fame, Yankees Stadium and travel to Montreal.

Happy JBH-versary!

Happy Anniversary Orin Schumacher!

Congratulations to Orin Schumacher as he celebrates his one year with JB Hunt.  He is the Operations Supervisor for the Central Farm & Garden DCS Account in Wooster, OH. 

Happy Anniversary Orin!