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About Keizertimes. (Salem, Or.) 1979-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 16, 2015)
OCTOBER 16, 2015, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A5 KeizerCommunity Holiday He’s a diamond in the rough bazaar KEIZERTIMES.COM Nov. 6 The Salem Hospital Aux- iliary will kick off the 2015 holiday season with a holiday craft bazaar on Friday, Nov. 6, in Building D on the Salem Hospital campus. Twenty-fi ve vendors will offer holiday gifts and decora- tions. The bazaar will run from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the lobby of Building D which is home to the Family Birth Center on Oak Street. Free parking is available at the hospital’s ga- rage on Capitol St. S.E., south of Oak Street. A percentage of sales will benefi t the Auxiliary’s scholar- ships and special projects. For more information call 503- 364-7785. MEN at MHS Male Ensemble Northwest (MEN)will perform a con- cert to McNary High School beginning at 4 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 17. Tickets are $7 for preferred seating and $5 general seating and available at the door or the McNary main offi ce. MEN is visiting the school as part of an all-day, all-male choral music festival. Jim Taylor, director of choirs at McNary, is part of the MEN group. All festival donors will re- ceive complimentary seats to the Festival Concert featuring the Festival Chorus and MEN from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Contributions via charge and debit cards can be made by contacting Leah Garro at 503-551-7392 or e-mail, mc- naryfi nearts@gmail.com SALEM By CRAIG MURPHY Of the Keizertimes After nearly 29 years working at a plywood mill, John Bail found himself a 49-year-old frantically look- ing around for a new line of work. The Keizer resident even- tually found a job as a heavy haul truck driver for Swift Transportation. His effort was recently recognized as John was honored with a Diamond Award from the company. Of the more than 18,000 drivers in the com- pany, only 1 percent get the award. Not bad, especially con- sidering the dilemma he was in 15 years ago. The Arizona-based truck- ing company fl ew John and wife Charlotte to Salt Lake City last month to be feted, along with other drivers be- ing honored. John got sev- eral personalized polo shirts, a backpack fi lled with items including two fl ashlights, a crystal miniature truck, a large blanket and a certifi cate. In addition, Charlotte got a $100 gift card. This is the third year for the diamond program. “I didn’t know anything about it until my manager called and said, ‘I heard you’re diamond.’ I said, ‘I am?’ I didn’t know. Our terminal manager got us included. The owner of the company (Jerry Moyes) fl ew diamond drivers and their spouses to Salt Lake City on Sept. 26 and put us up at the Mar- riott. We had a banquet with awards and a nice dinner. We were recognized at the ban- quet. The new inductees got fabulous gifts.” John typically gets up at KEIZERTIMES/Craig Murphy John Bail with wife Charlotte at their Keizer home. John is holding the crystal truck he received for being honored as a Diamond Driver, only 1 percent of Swift drivers received the award. 2 p.m. and gets to his truck in Brooks around 5. He starts work around 6 p.m., often driving up to cities in Wash- ington for stores like Winco and Costco before heading to Albany for a last load and then heading home at 8 a.m. and repeating the process each week day. “As long as you have a regular routine you do all the time, that makes so much dif- ference in making the adjust- ment (to driving all night),” John said. “Being home ev- RV SHOW SUPER SALE STATE FAIRGROUNDS Thursday thru Sunday THIS WEEKEND OCT. 15-18 ery day is great. There are a lot of drivers out there who would kill for my job.” The diamond award is a new top level. After starting at the bronze level, drivers have the chance to move up to silver, gold and then plati- num. “You have to do well to make it to gold,” John said. “You have to drive almost perfect to go to platinum. Then you have to have three perfect years to make dia- mond. That means no cita- tions or accidents, on-time pick-up and deliveries. You have to be safe and on time.” We are Everything Except Overpriced Among other things, meeting that criteria leads to a lower CSA (Compliance, Safety and Accountabil- ity program) score and keeps costs lower for Swift. In June 2000, the mill John had worked at for 28 years and 10 months was closed. It was suggested John try his hand at driving a truck and he took advantage of a government program for displaced mill workers to do just that. After six weeks of training, John had his CDL (Commercial Driver’s Li- cense) and drove a truck for a recycling company in Salem. But after 18 months, he was looking for work again. “I looked for work for two years,” John said. “I had appli- cations in everywhere. There were a lot of jobs I didn’t want to do but I applied for them because I wanted to work.” John had heard nega- tive stories about working at Swift and dragged his feet for a while. He fi nally applied and was hired in July 2003. Early on he was asked to do some Costco runs to Wash- ington. “I was on time, so they kept me,” John said. “I pre- fer this type of haul. A lot of drivers live for rumbling down the interstate every- where. I’m not one. I like do- ing my job, come home, have a home meal, go back the next day and do my job.” Charlotte likes the ar- rangement as well – after all, her husband is home if a project needs to be taken care of. She also doesn’t mind the recognition he got. “I am very proud of him,” Charlotte said. “The evenings can get lonely, but this defi - nitely makes up for it. I know Swift appreciates the drivers. Jerry Moyes gave a nice talk recognizing the heavy haul drivers. He really appreciates the diamond drivers. Swift has been very good to John.” John said success is due to support from offi ce crews and terminal manager who take care of the planning, all the way up the ladder to Moyes. “They always come through,” John said. “Some- thing else I like about Swift is they are one of the compa- nies that say if it is not safe to drive, pull off. If it’s so dan- gerous, you can pull off and that’s fi ne.” John fi gures he’ll keep driving as long as he can safe- ly do so. “I don’t foresee retiring,” he said. “I can’t see me sitting here watching TV every day. I’m not ready to retire.” Charlotte looked at her husband of 24 years and smiled. “Swift is not ready for him to retire, either,” she said. Simple Cremation $695 Inexpensive Burial and Funeral Options Pre-Planning Available YOUR FULL SERVICE RV DEALER SINCE 1969 trailer sales JUST WEST OF I-5 • 3282 Silverton Rd NE - Salem 503 .585.7713 - wagersrvs.com On-Site Crematory have years of experience in EXPERIENCE We design, carpentry, and engineering. won’t stop until the job is PROFESSIONALISM We fi nished and you are content. long list of satisfi ed TRUSTWORTHINESS Our clients attest to our ability to get the job done right. 503.393.2875 4365 RIVER RD N, KEIZER remodelkeizer.com 503.393.7037 CCB#155626 WorshipDirectory These Salem-Keizer houses of worship invite you to visit. Call to list your church in our Worship Directory: (503) 390-1051 John Knox Presbyterian Church JOIN US FOR SUNDAY WORSHIP 8:30 am • 10 am • 11:30 am • 6 pm PEOPLESCHURCH 4500 LANCASTER DR NE | SALEM 503.304.4000 • www.peopleschurch.com Celebration Services Saturday Evening 6:00 pm Children’s Programs, Student and Adult Ministries 1755 Lockhaven Dr. NE Keizer 503-390-3900 www.dayspringfellowship.com Sunday Morning 9:00 am and 10:45 am 452 Cummings Lane North • 393-0404 Father Gary L. Zerr, Pastor Saturday Vigil Liturgy: 5:30 p.m. Sundays: 8:15 a.m. & 10:30 a.m. La Misa en Español: 12:30 p.m. Rev. Dr. John Neal, Pastor Worship - 10:30 a.m. Education Hour - 10:00 a.m. Nursery Care Available www.keizerjkpres.org Jason Lee UMC 820 Jeff erson St. NE Salem OR 97301 Dr. Jon F. Langenwalter, Pastor The church with the purple doors 503-364-2844 Worship at 9:30 am • Child Care Available Faith Lutheran Church 4505 River Rd N • 393-4507 Sunday Schedule: 9:00 a.m. Children’s Church 9:15 a.m. Adult Bible Study 9:30 a.m. Children’s Activities Pastor Virginia Eggert 10:30 a.m. Worship with Communion