HighwaySTAR’s Jim Park shows skin for trucker group
OTTAWA, Ont. – The Owner-Operator’s Business Association of Canada, with the help of popular trucker guru and highwaySTAR editor and Jim Park, has raised $100,000 in sponsorship, membership, and pledges of support for the group.
The challenge was first issued in April by Park, who is also contributing editor of Today’s Trucking, when he promised in an editorial column that he would shave his head to help raise a bit of money for OBAC, which helps member owner-operators make business decisions. The campaign became known as “The $100,000 Haircut Challenge.”
“The demand [for OBAC’s input] is insatiable, but OBAC’s ability to deliver is finite,” Park said in the column. “I could go on about the good work OBAC has done, but the more important element is the work yet to come. It would be a crying shame to lose OBAC to its sea of debt.”
The association has been struggling financially since its small start-up budget was stolen by a former volunteer accountant, leaving the organization in debt, and without operating capital. OBAC executive director Joanne Ritchie says.
By the last day of Truxpo in Edmonton on Sept. 24, OBAC and its supporters and raised close to $90,000. With the prospect of several last-minute sponsorship offers being finalized in the coming days, Park went under the clippers. Henry VanSteenbergen, president elect of the Alberta Motor Transport Association, had the honour of taking the sheers to Park’s scalp.
“It’s symbolic of our willingness to embrace carriers who treat drivers and owner-operators fairly,” said Ritchie. “We want to build sustainable relationships with carriers who see owner-ops as business partners, and we encourage our members to choose their carrier partners carefully, opting to work with carriers who pay appropriate rates, and steering clear of those who exploit the relationship.”
Over the coming weeks, OBAC will be announcing some of the projects and activities made possible through the generosity and support of major donors.
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