trucks to the business where Jerry worked and thought the two would hit it off. Quite a good prediction. “He’s a very loyal person,” said Kay of her
husband. “He’s an idea person so you can bounce a lot of suggestions or thoughts off of him. He will many times find a more workable solution to a problem. He’s very patient.” Kay works in information systems and
technology at the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services, her employer of the last 36 years, and is active with the Lincoln Diocesan Council of Catholic Women. She and Jerry – who volunteer for Catholic Social Services – have brought their organizational and logistical skills to bear for their church, as well, by helping streamline the collection of goods for needy families. “I take a 16-foot enclosed trailer to a
rural parish every week for the collection of furniture, appliances, and clothes,” said Jerry. “Using my trucking background, I use two trailers so I always have one at a parish getting loaded and another one back being unloaded. I’ve done that for probably five years.”
A few years back, one of the priests
suggested they try to collect one of the most important necessities for the women’s and children’s shelters that Catholic Social Services runs: Diapers. “Kay was looking for an opportunity to
involve the Council of Catholic Women in all 134 parishes in our diocese and we came up with the Diaper Drive,” said Jerry. “Te first year we set a goal of 50,000 and we collected 50,000. Since then we’ve kept that goal but always surpassed it. For the four years, we’ve collected over 250,000 diapers.” Considering the couple also tend their
Martell farm, where they grow corn and soybeans, they don’t have loads of spare time. But they make it to some classic car events they attend in Jerry’s 1966 Chevy El Camino. Each year they also attend the National Truck Driving Championships, taking a week off so they can drive there and enjoy the scenery on the way, and enjoy the company of friends they’ve made over the years while they’re there. And they try to get down to Texas to visit Kay’s brother and his family for a few days a
couple of times during the winter. While one might not blame the Wessels if
they backed off the level of their activity with the association – given their jobs, the farm, and neither being actively employed in the industry right now anyway – the couple are quick to say they’re sticking around, and both cite the same reason. “I think it’s the people,” said Kay, echoing
her husband’s earlier declaration. “We made such good friends, they’re industry friends and they’re personal friends. Te annual activities, sometimes that’s our only opportunity to spend time with those folks.” And whether it’s the Nebraska Trucking
Association or the Lincoln Diocesan Council of Catholic Women, they don’t draw distinctions on who’s helping whom. Tey’re just both helping. “She helps with my activities and I help
with her activities, but we don’t really think about them as her activities or my activities,” Jerry said. “Everything we do, we kind of work on together.” Nt
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NEBRASKA TRUCKER — ISSUE 1, 2014 —
www.nebtrucking.com
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