When his daughter entered second grade in 1996 and Steve Weibley signed on as a Trucker Buddy for her class, he had no clue that he was embarking on a 10-year endeavor that would impact the educations of hundreds of children. For the past decade, Weibley has served as a Trucker Buddy for Cynthia Paulson’s second-grade class at Sarah Milner Elementary School in Loveland, Colo., and has helped teach the children about their community and the trucking industry.
In recognition of this achievement, Weibley was named the October ACS MultiMedia Trucker Buddy Driver of the Month. “Steve Weibley has truly made a difference in the lives of my second-grade students,” Paulson says. “He is a wonderful role model, always championing learning and the importance of education.” Weibley, a company driver for Stevens Transport, visited the school about once a month, arriving in his rig.
Wiebley used measurements involved in trucking, such as the size of his trailer, to teach math lessons, and he also sent postcards from across the country on a regular basis, as well as maps, travel brochures and educational materials. Over the years, Weibley has become like a second teacher to the class, Paulson says; some of his lessons include “Trip Down the Mississippi River,” “Colorado’s Seven Border States” and “The Interstate Highway System.”
Paulson retired at the end of the 2006 school year, and Weibley took the opportunity to take a year off from being a Trucker Buddy. However, Paulson still teaches part time, and Weibley, also from Loveland, still volunteers in the community and at the school. For more information about Trucker Buddy International, go to www.truckerbuddy.org or call 1-800-MY-BUDDY.
