A "Thin Blue Line" flag – the black, white and blue Stars and Stripes tribute to police officers who have died protecting us – is flying across the country, courtesy of Meiborg Inc., a trucking and logistics company headquartered in Rockford, Illinois.
The flag, emblazoned on a Wabash National DuraPlate van, pays homage to Jaimie Cox, a Rockford officer who was killed last Nov. 4 during a traffic stop. Before joining the city’s police force, Cox was a shop foreman at Meiborg's home base, said Zach Meiborg, the company's president.
Cox’s name and the date of his EOW – "end of watch" – appear next to the flag on a broad black background. The van is used for regular hauls. The company’s generous gesture got the attention of a local TV news outlet that did a story on it.
In the photo, the trailer is hitched to a vintage Peterbilt cabover which I guessed to be a Model 362. I asked Zach about it.
“Hey Tom, you were spot on,” he said in an email. “She is a 1983 Pete 362. We're a family owned company with 105 power units and 300 trailers. That's my Dad's (the owner's) fun truck. A friend of his found that truck for sale about five years ago. A widow had it in a barn for the past 10 or so years and was just looking to get rid of it.
“Originally it came with a Cummins Big Cam 400 and our shop pulled the Cummins out of it and replaced it with a 2002 [Cat] C-15 -- out of the truck that I trained on,” he continued. “Dad is still involved in the company and uses the truck under a load about once per month. He just loves driving.”
Zach added that he had a craftsman build a model of the old Pete, and presented it to his dad on his 60th birthday last year. Officer Jaimie Cox is probably admiring it, and the trailer, from above.
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