ORLANDO — Winners of the 2017 Mike Russell Trucking Image Award, honoring individuals and organizations that have worked on behalf of the industry, were announced by American Trucking Associations at the Management Conference & Exhibition in Orlando.

The Mike Russell Trucking Image Awards are named in honor of the late Mike Russell, a trucking industry supporter and former ATA vice president of public affairs. The award is sponsored this year by HireRight.

“Every person working in the trucking industry has the responsibility to advocate on its behalf and demonstrate the safety-first mentality of the trucking industry to the public,” said Kevin Burch, ATA chairman and president of Jet Express. “The winners we present today embody this award. These companies, organizations and individuals have gone above and beyond over the past several years to establish positive awareness of the trucking industry.”

This year’s winners are:

• The Arkansas Trucking Association Foundation for its efforts to leverage local relationships to amplify the American Trucking Associations national agenda, and setting an example of how to build a network of advocates who positively represent the trucking industry;

• Load One for its substantial involvement in Trucking Moves America Forward and company-wide efforts to elevate pro-trucking national statements through their image programs, trailer wraps, and work in their local community;

• Truckers Against Trafficking for its outreach in the community, on social media, and on the highways to put an end to human trafficking;

• Herschel Evans, Holland Inc., for representing the industry through his role as an America’s Road Team Captain, lifetime commitment to safe driving, and his establishment of the Safety Drive for a Cure truck driving competition to support the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, which has grown to attract national attention and tens of thousands of dollars in donations.

“The Mike Russell Trucking Image Award helps us recognize the ways in which individuals, organizations, and companies are committed to promoting the trucking industry to the public in new ways,” said Steven Spencer, managing director of transportation at HireRight. “These award winners continue to contribute to the advancement of our industry’s positive message and magnify the work of the many great people working in the trucking industry.”