REGINA, Sask. — The trucks are rolling through the Regina weigh scale on Highway 11, but this week, some drivers found more than a routine inspection waiting for them.
They were greeted with free burgers, drinks and appreciation packages as the Saskatchewan Trucking Association celebrated the people who keep goods moving across the province and country.
The Driver Appreciation BBQ is part of National Trucking Week, which runs Sept. 6 to 12 and recognizes the hundreds of thousands of Canadians working throughout the trucking industry.
For Rosann Semchuk, manager of membership development, engagement and government relations with the Saskatchewan Trucking Association, the message behind the event can be summed up in a simple reality of everyday life.
“Basically, if you bought it, a truck brought it.”
That means the drivers stopping at the Regina scale are part of a supply chain most people rarely think about until something they need is not on a shelf.
Semchuk says those drivers spend long stretches away from home while carrying the goods Saskatchewan residents rely on every day.
“They do a lot of long hours on the road, and they are really the people who are bringing in the goods that we use and buy on a daily basis. So they're the heroes of the things that we here in Saskatchewan need.”
About 10 to 12 volunteers helped hand out meals to drivers as they passed through the scale on Thursday, with more than 200 lunches served.
Each package included a beef or veggie burger, cheese, condiments and a drink, along with practical items and small giveaways. Sponsors and industry partners hleped make the event possible, while volunteers were doing the work of getting the meals into drivers' hands.
The barbecue has become a regular part of National Trucking Week in Regina, with the Saskatchewan Trucking Association also taking the appreciation campaign to other locations throughout the year.
Semchuk says the Regina event is part of a broader effort to make sure drivers travelling different routes across Saskatchewan know their work is valued.
“It's just amazing to see the smiles on their faces when they pull in. And our volunteers, our amazing volunteers are running their lunches out to the truckers. They open up their windows and they accept that appreciation from us as the trucking association.”
The association held another driver appreciation barbecue at the Langham weigh scale near Saskatoon in May, serving more than 200 meals, followed by another event near Moosomin in July. Similar barbecues have also been held at weigh scales in Yorkton and Swift Current.
The Regina stop has special significance because it was where the Saskatchewan series began, and Semchuk says the association has continued expanding the events to reach drivers wherever their routes take them.
“We like to spread it out because we know different routes are used by the different drivers and the companies. So we try to spread the love as best we can.”
The Saskatchewan Trucking Association's Driver Appreciation BBQ is being held during a week that dates back to the late 1990s, when the Canadian Trucking Alliance launched National Trucking Week to recognize the industry's contribution to the Canadian economy.
At the Regina weigh scale, however, the recognition is not coming through a campaign slogan or a statistic.
It is coming through a hot meal handed directly to someone sitting behind the wheel.
And for Semchuk, that small gesture carries a much bigger message.
“Today is a celebration of drivers, of professional drivers who are really the backbone of the economy. They are the people who are bringing in the goods. So we're celebrating the professional truckers who will be pulling into the weigh scales today. We're offering them, with a number of volunteers in the background, a free lunch, and we're just saying a giant thank you to them.”
