SCHENECTADY, N.Y– Canada’s 2005 HighwaySTAR of the year, Terry Smith of Miramichi is also a beacon of inspiration for a bunch of Schenectady, N.Y. grade-four students.

The kids have stars in their eyes for both Terry and his wife Roxanne, and the feeling, the Smiths report, is mutual.

That became evident in early December when the Smiths dropped in on the class, taking a minor detour from delivering a load of freight to Florida for Toronto-based Highland Transport, where Terry’s an owner-operator.

Roxanne, who as a retired schoolteacher is no stranger to the classroom, told Today’s Trucking Online “even though it was out of route, Highland encouraged the visit.”

Reigning highwaySTAR of the year is a
bright spot for some new fans

Laden with gifts of Christmas stockings, magazines, souvenirs and all sorts of other Canadian memorabilia ranging from the famous Ganong chocolates of New Brunswick to Teddie Bears courtesy of Highland, the Smiths invaded teacher Meredith Bernadt’s class at the Howe School in Schenectady.

By this point, you’re wondering, “what’s up with that?”

It’s all part of the Trucker Buddy program, which the Smiths joined earlier in the year at the suggestion of Bill Kalbhenn, Highland’s General Manager of risk assessment.

Trucker Buddy is a unique American-based pen-pal program matching professional drivers with students across North America in grades one through eight. And there’s no shortage of Canadian truckers willing to volunteer.

Once connected, the students and drivers exchange letters, emails and souvenirs or anything else they care to share, and students learn about the world of trucking and drivers.

“With very little effort you can open a child’s eyes to the trucking industry and, in turn, you are affecting not only their lives but the lives of their families and friends,” Roxanne wrote in Highland’s company newsletter. “Not only will you be enhancing the industry but you will also be helping to teach the children how to read maps, the geography of the United States and Canada, math and language skills, as well as a sense of responsibility and social skills.

“Many of the students in the program struggle with academics but because of their fascination with the trucking industry, they work hard and achieve success. It improves their self esteem because they feel special, and consequently they are more determined to succeed and learning becomes fun.

Not every Trucker Buddy ends up visiting a classroom but the Smiths were thrilled that they did.

“You could have peeled these kids off the ceiling,” she Roxanne. “Many of them had never seen a truck before, and we loved the experience.”

This past spring at Canada’s biggest-ever truck show, Truck World 2006 in Toronto, Terry Smith was presented with a cheque for $10,000 and an assortment of other prizes, in recognition of being named the 2006 highwaySTAR of the Year. The award was presented by highwaySTAR magazine editor Jim Park. (highwaySTAR and Truck World are both owned by Today’s Trucking’s publishing company Newcom Business Media.)