Do you ever feel vulnerable out on the
open road? What would you do if you were badly injured in a severe accident,
far from home, and found yourself stranded in a hospital because your insurance
company refused to cover the cost of your ride home? Would you be able to pay
the thousands of dollars for the specialized transportation or would you find
yourself "stuck" in a situation you had no control over? Unfortunately,
many truck drivers have found themselves in this exact predicament but, fortunately,
thanks to one caring man, there is help.
It might not seem like much of a problem, but given the dangers of operating
a big rig truck on a daily basis, it happens more often than you might think.
For this reason, Bob Hataway, founder of TransAlive USA, an organization dedicated
to helping truck drivers throughout the nation, designed and built the AmCoach.
This specially-modified bus was built specifically for the purpose of assisting
injured truckers either home or to a rehabilitation center. Sponsored by TransAlive
with help from transportation industry manufacturers and suppliers, the AmCoach
provides an alternative to air charter for injured drivers who cannot travel
in a sitting up position.
The AmCoach has a room with an adjustable bed and other special accommodations
to help make drivers comfortable in transit. Neither commercial flights nor
standard buses allow drivers to lay down during transit. There are also sleeping
quarters and a shower facility for the staff and family members accompanying
the driver. The motor coach also has a kitchen, living quarters, a lounge area
and luggage bay. Family members can travel with the driver, providing not only
love and support but medication and clean bandages when necessary.
Special air charter flights can charge up to $10 per air mile. Just imagine
if you were 2,000 miles from home. The air charter could cost $20,000! There
aren't many people that could afford that flight. The AmCoach does not charge
for its services, as it is operated with contributions. TransAlive wants every
truck driver to have access to the AmCoach to return home when needed. When
not under dispatch, the AmCoach visits truck stops and truck shows, displaying
their equipment and explaining the service. The $350,000 bus was purchased back
in 1999 and took a year and a half to be customized and equipped to handle the
injured truckers.
The AmCoach is just one of many programs that Bob Hataway's TransAlive USA provides
to drivers and their families across America. TransAlive was formed back in
1984 as a network of more than 100,000 volunteers to minister to truckers in
the hospital. Bob, a Baptist minister and former trucking executive, believes
he is doing God's work by assisting drivers in need. Using the AmCoach as his
pulpit, allowing him to perform his ministry, Bob envisions a fleet of coaches
throughout the country to serve injured truckers and reunite them with their
families.
One of Bob's recent trips involved Jim Toof, a trucker who got sick on the road
and had to spend three weeks in a hospital far from home while recovering. Needing
special transportation to get him home, the family turned to Bob who immediately
made the coach available. Jim and his wife were dropped off at the front door
of their home. In a testimonial and thank you letter written by Jim's daughter,
Jacque Hettle wrote: "The Hataways are ordinary people doing extraordinary
things in the lives of those they are allowed to help. I would like to encourage
you to help them in any way that you can. I know that large (and small) companies
have certain amounts of funds that can be disbursed for charitable efforts and
as far as I am concerned, you will find no greater cause to help than the Hataways
and their AmCoach. They need to be allowed to continue in their great work."
If you would like to learn more about TransAlive and the AmCoach, visit their
website at www.transalive.com. You'll
also find many interesting and informative items on the site such as safety
tips, information about their Caring in Action=Safety Program, a (long) list
of sponsors, details about their unique First Death Notifications service, and
tons of history about the organization and its founder. If you are a trucker
in need or would like to offer your help, call TransAlive at (800) USA-HURT.
It's caring people like Bob and his army of volunteers that make this world
not such a bad place after all. God bless you Bob!
Copyright ©
2002 10-4 Magazine and Tenfourmagazine.com
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