STONEY CREEK, Ont. – During the 1960s, George and Doreen Sharples planted the seed for a small family-owned and operated carrier, which would grow steadily during the years while maintaining its family roots.

Now 40 years young, White Oak Transport celebrated its ruby anniversary with a two-day event on Sept. 7 and 8 at its facility in Stoney Creek, Ont.

The sun came out on both days to help the carrier celebrate its 40th anniversary as drivers, customers and insurance representatives all joined in on the catered affair.

“We were so happy to see as many people turn out as they did, about 175 people came out over the two days,” noted Dave Thomas, safety and operations with White Oak.

During the celebration, the company had on display a vintage 1967 Kenworth cabover-style truck and also a new 2007 Freightliner model to showcase where the company began and how it operates today.

The company was established in Southern Ontario in 1966, running just two or three trucks in its humble beginnings.

“We ran about four or five trucks into the ’70s and in the late-’70s we began to expand into a company owned fleet of about 35 to 40 trucks. We had another expansion from the late ’90s to 2000 when we increased services,” explained Thomas, a 10-year employee of the company. “We’re not fast growers, just one step at a time.”

Today the company runs approximately 65 trucks – a combination of company and owner/operator trucks – and about 100 trailers. White Oak specializes in hauling steel, but also provides a full range of truckload and LTL logistic services with a variety of specialized equipment; including drop-deck trailers, rack and tarp and a variety of multi-axle trailers.

“We predominately run in Ontario and the US and a little into Quebec,” commented Thomas. “Most of our business goes down into the States.”

Throughout the years, White Oak has done its best to maintain a personal touch on its business relationships and has kept the company a family-owned and operated carrier. Today the privately-owned company is run by Stephen Sharples, son of the original founders.

As with any anniversary, one of the main purposes is to celebrate with those who are closest.

“One of the best parts is we were able to have quite a few of our drivers out for the celebration. One of the reasons to put on the celebration was for them, as some of the drivers have been with us for quite a while,” explained Thomas.

“Our president wanted to show appreciation to our drivers, staff, mechanics for all their work and everyone got personalized invitations. They’ve made White Oak what it is today.”