Carole LaViolctte, the teacher at Wildwood Elementary School
nominated Victor Parish as Trucker Buddy of the Month. Ms.
LaViolctte says, "He has graciously given of his time and effort to
enhance the quality of life of my students over the past six years. As
our trucker buddy, he visits my class on a regular basis and
discusses topics of interest that are relevant to my students' lives.
His up beat attitude and enthusiasm are contagious and serve to
inspire my fourth graders to achieve their personal best."
"In addition, Mr. Parish corresponds with my class while he is on the
road, and sends mementoes that offer my class an opportunity to
expand their knowledge base and thinking skills without ever leaving
the classroom. Further, each year that he has worked with one of my
classes, Mr. Parish has purchased a stuffed animal (this year a
penguin named "Huffy" by the students) that also corresponds with us while he travels across the USA, hitching rides with various truckers. At the end of the year, Huffy returned to us with a backpack full of notes and brochures from the locations he has visited. These experiences are particularly important for our school student population as 82% receive-free and reduced lunch and often have never traveled further than 50 miles from home."

Victor provides a positive role model that the students will be able to recall and reflect upon throughout their scholastic career and into adulthood. His students feel that he is a generous man who gives of his time and money for the good of others. He teaches his class about the dead zone of a truck and many of the safety tips that are important to a typical driver. Many students say that Victor encourages them to get good grades and work hard.

Victor Parish has shown that he has what it takes to be Trucker Buddy of the Month for May 2009.