Quality Transport, represented by Dave Dettman, has been working with Crest for nearly 30 years supplying freight services to our Dairy Ingredient Division. They average 20 deliveries and 8 return loads to Crest in any given week. Their service is impeccable and has remained so even when scheduling freight has become more than difficult. A big thank you goes out to all of our suppliers, we couldn’t do it without you.
Local Spotlight: Lee-Ogle Transportation System by Erika Meiners
As an employer of 700 people, we find that one of the things we enjoy most about being a part of a rural commu- nity leaves us at a disadvantage when trying to recruit employees. With 1000 residents and cornfields as far as the eye can see, Ashton, Illinois is probably the least-likely candidate for some type of public transportation system, and it takes a good 20 minutes to get here from Dixon or Rochelle. What do you do when you are deemed “in the middle of nowhere”? The Lee-Ogle Transportation System (LOTS) has been operating for the last 12 years as a way to provide public transportation to our community. Functioning as a collaborative with Kreider Services, Lee County Council on Ag- ing, Hub City Center, Village of Progress, and Rock River Center, they offer bus rides to those with disabilities, seniors, veterans, and the general public. Monday – Friday, about 26 buses hit the road to drive people all over Lee and Ogle counties for an affordable fare. This makes the service especially helpful for those that don’t have a ve- hicle, the resources to maintain a vehicle, or can’t drive.
During a normal year, LOTS provides about 100,000 rides to residents in the county area which totals about 700,000 miles per year. Many of those miles are from employees coming to and from Ashton! A few years ago, Crest contacted LOTS out of a need to help people who didn’t have reliable transportation or couldn’t drive to get to work. In addition to helping our current employees, we also wanted a way to attract potential new employees to give Crest Foods a shot – even if they didn’t have a vehicle. LOTS listened to our needs, and figured out how to route buses here from all over Ogle and Lee county so that employees had an option for reliable transporta- tion, where the cost was covered by Crest. Employees have to call for a ride 48 hours in advance, and can then be put on a regular schedule, where they receive a reminder call the night before and have to check in when they get on the bus, which helps us keep track of all riders and fees. This has been a great partnership from the beginning, and we are so happy that LOTS has been able to help us creatively solve a problem. We appreciate the service that they provide for our employees, and look forward to working with them for years to come! To schedule a ride with LOTS, call 888-239-9228
July, August & September 2021 Crest Ink 15
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