|
 Alicia Clark works for her family owned trucking
company, Clark Transportation Inc. Alicia said, “Clark
Transportation hauls mostly food grade and other essential items.”
The company located near the Oasis Senior Center and Interstate 55
in Lincoln has over thirty essential employees, most of who travel
coast-to-coast all over the United States.
To Clark’s knowledge, most of the shippers and receivers the company
picks up and delivers to are all practicing some form of safety
precautions, some more extreme than others, which she finds
reassuring.
Clark said, “We are encouraging our drivers to be prepared before
they go out over the road regarding groceries. Some employees are
struggling to adapt to a lifestyle on the road in which most diners,
truck stops and rest stops are closed down.”
Other employees are already used to cooking in their trucks because
they have mini-fridges and microwaves and can use convection ovens,
crockpots, and little burner stoves. Still, Clark said it is a
struggle considering all the convenience closures.
For Clark Transportation, Alicia said “Our drivers are our greatest
asset. We value them greatly and appreciate their constant hard work
and dedication. We have a couple of them that have been with us for
over a decade and really have been through it all with us, but never
anything like this that has (parts of) the entire world shutdown.
As a family, the Clarks are all involved with the business and must
be at the shop or office every day along with several other staff
members that Clark said are like family.
The Clark family likes to say “we are like spokes in a wheel—if one
of us is gone, things just don’t roll as smoothly as they should.
Our awesome staff keeps the offices and high traffic areas cleaned
and sanitized as often as possible.” [to top of second
column] |
In addition, Clark said the staff is often cleaning and detailing
the trucks if the driver asks when they are in to be serviced.
Thankfully the company has plenty of soap and sinks for hand
washing.
On the business end, Clark said, “we are feeling the economic impact
of it all. Give the shutdown of the country and across the globe,
commerce has dropped significantly. This affects not only the volume
of freight available to us, but also the rates we receive from
customers.”
Clark said, “Some potential customers have actually not been able to
keep their doors open with all of this depending on what commodities
they specialize in shipping, and have gone bankrupt.”
As business owners in the trucking industry, Clark said, “It is a
scary time in many ways, but overall, we have faith in God and trust
that he always has a plan. Everything we have belongs to God and we
just manage it for him.”
During this time, Clark said, “We will continue to persevere and do
just that to the best of our abilities.”
[Angela Reiners] |
