The journey began with 14 individuals from the trucking industry who decided to rappel off a 26 storey building in London Ontario. The event, Rope for Hope, is ran by the Make-A-Wish foundation, which raises money to grant wishes for children with life-threatening illnesses.

“Our goal in the beginning was to raise $10,000 to fund Colby’s Wish to take his family, including his brother and sister, to Disney World,” said Aaron Lindsay, VP of Marketing at Trucking for Wishes, a company that raises money for the Make-A-Wish foundation on behalf of the trucking industry. “The response from the trucking industry was so incredible that we were able to raise over $65,000, allowing us to sponsor even more wishes.”

The Trucking for Wishes team raised more than any other team across Canada. This proves that when we come together as a community, we can accomplish anything. This was a very high profile event for Make-A-Wish and it was a great opportunity to showcase the incredible people and companies within the trucking industry.

Lou Smyrlis, publisher and editorial director of Truck News, who completed the Rope for Hope challenge this year said, “Rappelling 26 storeys off the TD Tower in London was a great way to raise awareness for a great cause, which is really the most important thing to remember. So many people in our industry – some of them very nervous of heights – were willing to face their fears, and in doing so they captured the awareness of donors across Canada. As a result we were able to help some very special kids, and I am so proud to have been part of this incredible event.”

The 14 Courageous Rappellers on the Trucking for Wishes Team were:

1) Lou Smrylis, Truck News
2) Doug Coleman, Doug Coleman Trucking
3) Roman Lewinsky, Navistar
4) Claudia Milicevic, TransCore
5) Lynda Crickmore, Challenger Motor Freight
6) Geoff Topping, Challenger Motor Freight
7) Dionne Castillo, Birdseye Solutions
8) Carlo Woldeghiorghis, TTR
9) Micheal Foy, Travellers Financial
10) Brandon Clark, Dalton Timmis
11) Kate Oke, NAL Insurance/Healthy Trucker
12) Aaron Lindsay, NAL Insurance/Healthy Trucker
13) Keith Caldwell, NAL Insurance/ Healthy Trucker
14) Glenn Caldwell, NAL Insurance/Healthy Trucker

There aren’t too many dads that I know can say they rappelled 26.5 floors with their 17 year old son. Over the years I’ve coach him in hockey and baseball, but this has got to be one of the coolest things we have been able to do together. The smile on his face when we were stepping over the edge together, is something I won’t ever forget. As we began our journey down the building, we kept each other focused on the present, which for us was enjoying the view and really taking it all in.

After it was all over and we were getting our medal from Colby, it really hit home as to how fortunate we truly were.

We couldn’t have done any of this without the generosity of the trucking industry. Fleets and suppliers from the industry that made corporate donations of $250 got their logo on one side of the Trucking for Wishes Trailer. Fleets that donated $500 have their logo prominently displayed on both sides and will get use of the Trucking for Wishes Trailer for 2 weeks over the next year. There are still a few spots open for fleets that would like to support this very worthy cause.

Trucking For Wishes is not stopping here. In partnership with Southwood Graphics, Trucking for Wishes will be making new trailer decals available exclusively to sponsors with all the proceeds going to Make A Wish. “Each decal will tell a story of a wish that was made possible by one of our sponsors. We want to show the public what the trucking industry is doing to raise money and awareness for an amazing cause,” said Lindsay. Pricing for the decals is listed below.

Trailer Decal Pricing

Small (one foot) – $29.95

Medium (2 feet) = $59.95

Large (3 feet) = $99.95

For more information please visit www.truckingforwishes.com or email info@truckingforwishes.com

About the Author

Glenn Caldwell
Vice-President-Sales
NAL Insurance Inc.
(519)432-8333 ext. 3350 (Phone)
(800)265-1657 (Toll Free)
(519)434-5220 (Fax)
(519)671-1060 (Cell)
www.nalinsurance.com
www.healthytrucker.com