APTA names industry award winners; Lee Ann McConnell honoured

SAINT JOHN – The Atlantic Provinces Trucking Association’s chairperson and general manager of McConnell Transport was recently awarded the 2005 Service to the Industry Award.

Lee Ann McConnell of Woodstock, N.B. accepted the award at the association’s 55th annual convention in Saint John, N.B. this past weekend.

The Service to Industry award recognizes an individual who, by their commitment, vision, leadership and generous service, has made an outstanding contribution to the development and success of the truck transportation industry. “McConnell is not only a champion in the work she does, but a champion to her community, her family and the industry as a whole,” the APTA stated in a release.

McConnell has been an active member of the APTA for many years serving as a director, secretary treasurer, vice-chair and as chairperson of the APTA for the past 2 years. She also sits on several National Boards including the Canadian Trucking Alliance and the Canadian Trucking Human Resource Sector Council.

Other award winners included:

William Haslett, a truck driver with over 24 years commercial driving experience, was named the Volvo Trucks Canada Driver of the Year for his exemplary driving record and commitment to professionalism within the trucking industry.

Haslett from Saint John, N.B., has been a driver with RST Industries for the past 9 years. He has driven almost 2 million miles in his professional driving career with the past 18 years accident free. He travels from Saint John to Quebec and all points in Atlantic Canada and the Eastern US.

Garry Alderdice’s dedication to Safety within the trucking industry has earned him the 2005 APTA “Safety To Motor Transport Award”, sponsored by Markel Insurance Company of Canada.

From Halifax, N.S., Alderdice and has been operating Aldercomp Health & Safety for the past 8 years. He is an occupational health & safety consultant, assisting clients with all their health and safety needs. He is also a volunteer resource board member with the Nova Scotia Trucking Safety Association and is always on hand to assist members with their safety issues throughout the Atlantic region.

Truck driver Ronald Groundwater was presented with the 2005 Good Samaritan Award, sponsored by Marine Atlantic Inc.

Groundwater, a driver for Unique Personnel Services, came across an overturned tractor-trailer in the province of Maine earlier this year. The overturned truck belonged to Stephen Mills, with General Freight Carriers Inc., based in Saint John, N.B. Groundwater did not hesitate to rush through the snow to pull the trapped driver from the wreckage. He helped Mills to his vehicle where he stayed with him until medical help arrived.

Groundwater also volunteers as a director on the APTA Safety Council and is active in organizing the regional Truck Driving Championships.

The APTA’s 2005 Cancom Tracking Dispatcher of the Year Award was presented to Christine Rankin of Woodstock, N.B. Rankin, has served as dispatcher with the Day & Ross Group for the past 25 years.

She is described by Day & Ross as a dedicated, talented dispatcher who is committed to upholding company standards. One driver described her as “the most up front, honest and sincere person that I have ever met in my thirty-seven years of driving tractor-trailer.”