TLA61_AllPages

The organization doesn’t just deliver food to help school children.
It also distributes teaching supplies to schools in need. In
fact, in 2022, it provided classrooms with $3.8 million in teaching
supplies and $5.3 million in books. And, again, all of it is
partially thanks to FTCT.
“You might say that Feed the Children is the reason for our
existence,” said Mills, noting that the organization began building
its fleet of trucks in 1986.
FTCT’s employees are proud of what this small group of dedicated
individuals is able to accomplish.
We have 25 drivers, two mechanics, and six administrators
— and all have completely bought into (a culture of) safety,”
Mills said. “It starts at the top and carries throughout the organization.”
Unlike many carriers, FTCT does not operate its own driving
school; instead, it depends on finding experienced drivers to fill
openings. The fact that the carrier has won recognition from
TCA as a “Best Fleet to Work For” for several years running
probably makes recruiting rather easy.
“We require that our drivers bring two years of safe driving
experience with them when they sign on with us,” Mills said.
Those drivers are fully vetted before they ever arrive for orientation
at FTCT.
“We want the best of the best as drivers, and it all begins
with our hiring process,” she said. FTCT’s human resource team
is just as concerned with safety as any other employee of the
company, and it’s their job to find potential
employees with impeccable safety records.
FTCT does have a mentoring program
in which new drivers learn the ropes of the
company — including its culture — by
teaming with an experienced employee. During
this process, new employees meet with
the entire FTCT team, from the company
president and each department head, as well
as fellow drivers.
By the time they complete the orientation
and mentoring process, new FTCT drivers
understand how important safety is to the
company. In fact, it’s so important that in
2022 the company logged over 2.3 million
safe driving miles. Its drivers also had perfect
safety records in 2020 and 2021.
The culture of safety extends beyond truck
drivers: FTCT has an equally impressive record when it comes
to the safety of mechanics, administrators, and drivers who
might be involved in non-driving accidents.
Of course, a carrier doesn’t win TCA’s safety award based on
just a one-year record; it’s a safe bet that award winners have
been recognized as being safe by more than one organization.
This is certainly the case with FTCT. It has won the Grand Trophy
for safety among small carriers four times and has been named
a leading safe carrier on eight occasions. FTCT has also won
the Oklahoma Trucking Association’s Grand Trophy for safety
six out of the last nine years and has been recognized for Outstanding
Achievement in Highway Safety by the organization for
twelve years running.
It’s not just safety that makes FTCT stand out among the TCA
membership. The company has been named to the Best Fleets
to Drive For list 11 straight years and has been part of the Best
Fleets to Drive For Hall of Fame the past two years. The carrier
has also been named an EPA SmartWay High Performer. Employees
of the company have been honored with their share of
awards for individual achievements as well.
For a trucking firm with the important mission of serving as
“wheels on the ground” for Feed the Children, these accolades
only serve to increase the pride in a job well done.
“As a small trucking firm in Oklahoma, we are just honored to
be on the radar,” Mills said.
TCA JULY/AUGUST 2023 www.Truckload.org | Truckload Authority 39