TCA RECOGNIZES PROFESSIONAL TRUCK DRIVER JEREMY FRANK AS A HIGHWAY ANGEL

05/18/2004
Alexandria, Virginia

The Truckload Carriers Association (TCA) recently recognized Jeremy Frank, of Zanesville, Ohio, as a Highway Angel for being the sole person to stop to assist a woman involved in a serious accident on a busy interstate.

Frank was driving on Interstate 77 in Akron, Ohio, making a delivery along his usual run to New York, when he came across an accident that had just happened. A vehicle was pinned between a concrete barrier and another car that had skidded across the highway. Frank was surprised that no one was on the scene to help, but without hesitation, he pulled his rig over to the side of the road. The female driver of the pinned vehicle was just stepping out of her car when he arrived on the scene.

“She complained of neck pain – luckily she had been wearing her seat belt – but she seemed OK otherwise,” Frank said of the middle-aged woman who was alone in the vehicle. “She was very upset; she grabbed hold of my hand and hugged me and asked me to pray with her.”

Frank tried to calm the woman and called her husband to let him know of the situation. He then checked on the condition of the male driver of the other vehicle, but the man was badly hurt and unable to move. Not wanting to move the injured man, Frank waited for paramedics to tend to the man.

Although he has been driving for only about four years, Frank said he has stopped to assist people involved in accidents before but this is the first time he’s run into such a serious accident where no one else stopped to help.

“That’s what puzzled us because it’s a busy highway,” explained Frank. “It was right around Christmas time, too, and no one else stopped. I felt I had to.”

The woman was so appreciative of Frank’s efforts, she later called the local newspaper and sent him a letter and gift certificate.

Frank also received a Highway Angel lapel pin, certificate, and patch from TCA for his efforts, and his employer, U.S. Xpress Enterprises, Inc., received a certificate for acknowledging a Highway Angel in their midst.

Since the program’s inception in August 1997, hundreds of drivers have been recognized as Highway Angels for the exemplary kindness, courtesy, and courage they have displayed while on the job.