WINNIPEG, Man. – Payne Transportation held its annual awards gala Nov. 29, recognizing drivers who exemplify the best when it comes to safety, service, and community.  Three drivers were honored with Driver of the Year awards in their respective categories.

In the open deck division, Abraham Bissessar took home the top spot, with Brian Kemp and team drivers Cornelia Hartmann and Andreas Weisse named runners up.

For the van division, Nigel Burgess was Driver of the Year, while Byung Taek Park and team drivers Keum Ko and Hakim Kim were runners up.

The specialized category saw William Schroeder take the top prize and David Wiebe and Christer Gustafsson named runners up.

The selection process involves drivers being nominated by Payne’s operations team, then being vetted by the safety department, and finally voted on by the executive advisory committee. With 17 submissions this year, the nominating committee introduced a new format for selecting Driver of the Year by honoring a winner in three categories and naming two runner ups.  During its gala, Payne Transportation also chooses a charity the company will support with its silent auction fundraiser. This year, proceeds from the raffle will be donated to the Children’s Wish Foundation.

More than 160 drivers, mechanics, and office staff from Payne attended this year’s awards gala.

L to R: Thomas McKee, Patrik Anias & Tom Payne Jr.

Staff and drivers at Payne Transportation came together on Friday November 23 to celebrate the accomplishments of another successful year in business and to recognize employees celebrating milestone anniversaries and drivers achievements in safe driving!

The event was held at the Hilton Airport hotel in Winnipeg and was attended by over 140 of Payne’s drivers, mechanics, and office staff.

Annually, the highlight of the gala, is the announcement of the “Payne Transportation Driver of the Year”.   The selection process for the driver of the year involves being nominated by the operations team, vetted by the safety department to ensure they qualify, and then voted on by the Executive Advisory Committee.

The finalists were announced and recognized at the awards gala.  They were, Gordon Reimer, Christer Gustafsson , Patrik Anias, Byung Taek Park and Peter Wiebe.

Out of this group of finalists Patrik Anias was selected as the  2018 Payne Transportation Driver Of The Year.

Patrik has been an owner operator with Payne since August 2015 and was chosen because of his dedication to hard work, his support of his fellow drivers and the fact that he will do whatever is asked of him.  He has even rescued other drivers when they need help! Once when another driver had major tractor issues on the east coast, and when asked if he’d run team after he delivered and finish delivering the driver who broke down…his response was “no problem”.   Patrik is always willing to help out his fellow drivers, he also bailed out another driver one time and delivered a 12 drop California load all in one week and all while ensuring he maintained compliance with his e-logs.

Tom Payne, President of Payne Transportation states “In the next couple of years, our company will be approaching our 20^th Anniversary, and I can’t express how proud I am of everyone at Payne for their commitment to our company’s success!”  Congratulations to everyone on their achievements this year, we look forward to another successful year in 2019.”

Payne Transportation Ltd. celebrates safety, service and a passion to give back at annual awards gala.

Payne Transportation employees came together on Friday November 24 to celebrate the achievements of another year in business at their annual awards dinner and dance at the Hilton Hotel in Winnipeg.

The event was attended by over 160 of Payne’s drivers, mechanics, and office staff to celebrate those who have committed to making safety and service a priority and to recognize individuals who are celebrating milestone employment anniversaries.

The highlight of the gala, was the announcement of the Payne Transportation driver of the year. The selection process for the driver of the year involves being nominated by the operations team, vetted by the safety department to ensure they qualify, and then voted on by the Executive Advisory Committee.

The finalists were announced and recognized at the awards gala, They are:, Patrik Anias, Dilpreet Bilkhu, Jean Paul Friesen, Jake & Darlene Hiebert (team drivers), Iain Iverson, Dan & Linda La Fond (team drivers) Efim Lanstein, Isaac Letkeman and Alex Melnik.

Out of this group of nominees Jake and Darlene Hiebert were chosen as the 2017 Payne Transportation driver(s) of the year.

The annual celebration also included a silent auction to raise funds for Siloam Mission, a local organization that alleviates hardships and provides opportunities for change for those affected by homelessness. For the past 3 years Payne has been able to raise $7,500 toward the organization through this auction and this year was able to raise another $5,000 to add to that total.

“Our annual gala is a celebration of our drivers and staff to recognize them for their innovation, service and leadership, but we also work toward celebrating change for the better to help improve the quality of life in the communities in which we operate” says Payne Transportation President Tom Payne.

Items for the silent auction are donated by Payne Transportation’s customers, vendors and suppliers.