Supporting their local community
Going back to school can be a super exciting time for kids, but for some families it can be an expensive exercise setting them up to begin a new year. When the opportunity presented itself to support a family and make one lucky youngster thrilled to be starting school off on the right foot, it was a no brainer for Southern Transport. As part of their commitment to our local community, Southern wanted to give back to those who support them all while showcasing the brand-new Mack Superliner on debut. Collaborating with local radio station Southland’s More FM Breakfast Club helped turn the Back to School for 2024 with Southern Transport a reality. In February, show host Simon put the call out to all truck enthusiasts, and five-year-old Sophia from Fernworth Primary School in Invercargill was chosen out of a bunch of competition entries. With many live crosses on the radio throughout the morning covering the Mack truck and Sophia’s journey from start to finish, astute driver Nick Young showed up at her front door in his automatic, 685 horsepower eight-wheeler, which, with the trailer attached, weighs a whopping 58 tonnes all up. Pretty much straight from the engineers and mechanics, it was the truck’s first proper journey – from Sophia’s doorstep, right to her school entrance. Designed for carting aggregate for concrete plants, including sand, stone chip and fertiliser, taking Sophia to school was an extra special trip for Nick and his shiny new truck. Witnessing her classmates welcoming Sophia at the front gate and cheering for the truck made supporting a local competition like this worthwhile. And that wasn’t all! Sophia also won a haircut from Venom, a Clip ‘N Climb voucher from ILT Stadium Southland, a Blast and Bounce Pass from Jump N Fun, and a trip to McDonalds for breakfast before rolling into her first day of school. One thing is for sure, there were smiles all round.
