TCA Lays Wreaths on Air Force Veterans’ Graves

Special ceremony at Air Force Academy Cemetery in Colorado Springs was made possible by TCA’s officers

Colorado Springs, Colorado:

This morning at the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado., the Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) conducted a special ceremony to honor Air Force veterans who are interred at the Academy’s cemetery. Chris Burruss, TCA’s president, and Josh Kaburick, COO of TCA member Earl L. Henderson Trucking Company of Salem, Ill., represented the association by placing a fresh wreath on the first of approximately 950 graves.

The event was initiated by Barry Pottle, the president and CEO of Pottle’s Transportation, Inc. of Bangor, Maine, and a TCA officer.  Pottle rallied his fellow officers to contribute nearly $10,000 to purchase the wreaths.  Earl L. Henderson Trucking Co. transported the greenery to Colorado Springs via a donated truck and the services of two if its drivers.

“A few months ago, our officers had held their annual planning meeting at the academy and were tremendously impressed with the cadets and their outstanding dedication to this country,” explained Burruss. “They thought this would be an appropriate and moving way to show the truckload industry’s appreciation for their sacrifices, and it certainly was.”

The ceremony was a natural complement to a program that TCA and many in the truckload industry actively support, called Wreaths Across America™. Each year in December, a long convoy of trucks — including some donated by TCA members — carries thousands of fresh wreaths from Maine to burial sites across the nation. TCA has produced a 30-second television commercial that highlights the generosity of the trucking companies who transport these wreaths each year. TCA members often arrange for this commercial to air in their local communities, thus ensuring that the general public is made aware of this positive and patriotic aspect of the trucking industry.

“Trucking supports our veterans, there’s no doubt about it,” said Burruss. “Both the military and trucking provide critical services to our country, albeit in different ways. We’re both working for America.”