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Kottke Trucking announces the creation of True Blue Supply Chain Management

Read the original post over on True Blue Supply Chain Management’s website.

Kottke Trucking is proud to announce the revamping of their brokerage with the creation of True Blue Supply Chain Management. Kottke Trucking founded its brokerage in 1992 to support the trucking part of the business and with the creation of True Blue Supply Chain Management the division has now converted to a full supply chain management company.

True Blue Supply Chain Management will be able to help with any logistical needs in the continental United States. True Blue can help with needs in the world of dry, refrigerated, regional, long haul, dedicated, temperature controlled LTL, managed services, supply chain and logistics.

With the creation of True Blue Supply Chain Management, Kottke Trucking welcomes Kara Usher to the Kottke family. Usher will serve as Vice President of Logistics for True Blue.

“I am excited to join the Kottke family with True Blue Supply Chain Management. I look forward to being a part of the expansion of our supply chain offerings with having a leading role in our logistics team,” Usher said. “I believe my diverse background working on the shipper, carrier and 3PL side over the past 12 years will help develop and continue to drive long lasting business relationships with both customers and carriers. The support and trust that the Kottke family has already provided is unparalleled and I cannot wait to see what the future holds!”

“We are always looking for ways to make our offerings unique and with the creation of True Blue Supply Chain Management, we are doing just that,” General Manager Kyle Kottke said. “With True Blue and the expanding asset side of Kottke Trucking, we will be able to offer things many cannot. It is an exciting time to be #BleedingBlue. We are glad to have Kara join our family and we are excited to move forward together.”

True Blue Supply Chain Management will utilize Kottke Trucking’s assets in the souteast and midwest, but it doesn’t stop there. True Blue Supply Chain Management can help with your logistical needs from coast to coast.

Dry. Refrigerated. Regional. Long haul. Dedicated. Temperature Controlled. LTL. Managed Services. Supply Chain. Logistics.

True Blue Supply Chain Management and Kottke Trucking have you covered.

Vice President of Logistics Kara Usher

The 90 Best Trucking Songs Handpicked by Kottke Trucking and Friends

Have you ever been driving down the road and craved to hear a bunch of trucking songs? We sure have and now you can do just that!

Recently, we asked on our social media pages, what everyone’s favorite truck driving songs are. We kicked things off by mentioning the Kottke family’s love of “Roll On (Eighteen Wheeler)” by Alabama. The responses rolled on in with a bunch of great songs.

With those suggestions and a few more filled out by Kottke family favorites, we came up with a list of the best trucking songs. To start, we have a list of 90 songs with a run time of just under four hours and 45 minutes. We complied all of them together in a Spotify playlist for your listening pleasure.

Enjoy songs from the legends of the trucking songs like Jerry Reed, C.W. McCall, Red Sovine, Red Simpson and Dave Dudely. Plus, hear songs from superstars like Merle Haggard, George Strait, Johnny Cash, Randy Travis, Willie Nelson and so many more.

If you have trucking songs that we missed, let us know! We’d love to keep growing the list of the best trucking songs!

Kottke Trucking Purchases Wayne T. Fellows, Inc.

Kottke Trucking, Inc. has acquired Wayne T. Fellows, Inc. a trucking company focused on refrigerated less-than-truckload and truckload shipping based out of Davenport, Florida. In the acquisition of Wayne T. Fellows, Inc., Kottke Trucking will be adding 43 truck drivers and 22 non-driving positions in accounting, warehouse, dispatch and shop to the Kottke Trucking family.

Kottke Trucking has prided itself on family values since the first day of operation in 1938. Wayne T. Fellows, Inc. has held those same core family values in their decades in the industry as well, making the combining of the two companies a great match.

“We are always looking for ways to better our company and this was a great opportunity to do that. Bringing together the two companies will make a stronger company than the two would be apart. We are excited to have the Wayne T. Fellows family join our Kottke Trucking family,” Kyle Kottke, co-owner and General Manager of Kottke Trucking said.

“As I get ready to retire, I am extremely excited to announce the purchases of Wayne T. Fellows, Inc. and Fellows Truck Brokers, Inc. by Kottke Trucking,” said Tom Fellows, CEO and General Manager of both entities. “The similarities and core values of both companies have led my wife, Sue, and I to believe that we will complement each other very well as we blend together and be able to continue to provide the quality service that customers of both sides have come to know and expect. The entire Fellows family and team are looking forward to joining the Kottke family and the next chapter.”

“This is an extremely exciting day for our family and our entire staff,” said Donna Fellows-Coffey, CFO/COO for Fellows Trucking. “I’ve had the great honor of watching my parents, Tom and Sue, build this company from the ground up, and have been blessed to work alongside them and learn from them each step along the way. On behalf of the entire Fellows family, I want to thank every current or former staff member, customer, or vendor that has helped us enjoy the success we have and helped the realization of my father’s dream become reality. I look forward with hope and anticipation to continuing our family’s fourth generation of trucking tradition as a member of Kottke’s team. I am tremendously proud of my parents and all that they have accomplished and can’t think of a better family to be blending with than the Kottke’s. I’d like to think that my grandfather Fred and great-uncle Steve, who taught my Dad the trucking ropes. I know they are standing alongside Duane and Connie Kottke in heaven today, looking down with a smile and toasting to jobs well done. Starting today, the Fellows family is honored to say that we are #BleedingBlue.”

Kottke will continue to maintain operations in the Buffalo Lake, Minnesota, Eagan, Minnesota and Wildwood, Florida terminals, in addition to bringing in the terminal sites via Wayne T. Fellows, Inc. in Davenport, Florida and Winter Haven, Florida.

This is Kottke Trucking’s second acquisition in the past three years. Kottke Trucking purchased the over-the-road division of Walbon & Company, Inc in the summer of 2016.

Kottke Trucking, Inc. is a third-generation interstate hauler that focuses on refrigerated and dry van transportation. Kottke has been in operation since 1938 and currently operates over 200 semi-tractors. Kottke Trucking is proudly based where it all began 81 years ago in Buffalo Lake, Minnesota. Kottke Trucking also holds terminals in Eagan, Minnesota, Wildwood, Florida and now in Davenport, Florida and Winter Haven, Florida.

From left to right: Wayne T. Fellows owners Sue Fellows and Tom Fellows. Kottke Trucking owners Kyle Kottke, Kurt Kottke and Kory Kottke.

Sam Harman named Second Quarter Award of Excellence recipient

Kottke Trucking is proud to announce that Sam Harman has been named our 2019 Second Quarter Jim Doering Award of Excellence Winner. Harman has been with Kottke Trucking since March 2011 and has been driving professionally for 35 years. It has been great having Sam as part of the Kottke Trucking family for the past eight-plus years.

Harman’s nominator said in nominating him that Sam is an unforgettable man but does his job so well that you can forget about him (trust us, that’s a compliment). Sam’s heart is so large he needs to be reminded to think of himself. Simply, Sam is a great man.

Sam’s greatness shows every day and we thank him for being a part of the Kottke Trucking family!

The Jim Doering Award of Excellence was established in 2014 in honor of Kottke Trucking’s first employee and nearly 40-year employee Jim Doering. The award is designed to honor a driver each quarter that has the same great qualities that made Jim such a special man. The four winners of the quarterly Jim Doering Award of Excellence are also the finalists for the Duane and Connie Kottke Distinguished Driver of the Year Award. The First Quarter Award Of Excellence recipient was Paul Wright.

Congrats, Sam! We thank you for your hard work and dedication for Kottke Trucking!

Kurt Kottke with Sam Harman.

13th Annual Golf Towards A Cure raises over $13,300

On Monday, June 17, Kottke Trucking and the 18 Wheelers Walk In The Park team held our 13th annual Golf Towards A Cure golf outing at beautiful Oakdale Golf Club just north of Buffalo Lake. Despite having to dodge the occasional raindrop, it was a beautiful day to come together to raise $13,341.

As always, the event was a success thanks to all our participants from our wonderful customers, vendors, local businesses and community organizations. We thank you all for your support and sponsorship of this wonderful event.

We’d also like to send a special thanks to Oakdale Golf Club for sponsoring the event.

The day is always one of our favorites of the year and we thank everyone who participated and donated both their valuable time and money to help in the battle to defeat cancer.

The 14th Annual Golf Towards A Cure event is set for June 22, 2019, the Monday after Father’s Day, at Oakdale Golf Club.

What is Walk In The Park? This pas year our Relay was saved by combining our efforts with the RC Hospital Foundation and developing a new Relay that we named “Walk In The Park”. With this new partnership we can focus our efforts on local needs of those facing the battle and be directly involved with supporting cancer research projects and Hope Lodge. We have a standing friendship with the American Cancer Society and they are very supportive of our efforts. A link to the Walk in the Park Facebook page can be found here.

Paul Wright named First Quarter Award of Excellence recipient

Kottke Trucking is proud to announce that Paul Wright has been named the 2019 First Quarter Jim Doering Award of Excellence Winner. Wright has been with Kottke Trucking since February 2017 and has been driving professionally for over a decade. It has been great having Paul as part of the Kottke Trucking family for the past two years.

Wright’s nominator said in nominating him that Paul is always on-time and always lets us know what is going on with him out on the road. Paul always says that he drives a company truck and he will do whatever we need him to do.

Paul shows that great attitude and dedication every single day. We thank Paul for being an integral part of the Kottke Trucking family!

The Jim Doering Award of Excellence was established in 2014 in honor of Kottke Trucking’s first employee and nearly 40-year employee Jim Doering. The award is designed to honor a driver each quarter that has the same great qualities that made Jim such a special man. The four winners of the quarterly Jim Doering Award of Excellence are also the finalists for the Duane and Connie Kottke Distinguished Driver of the Year Award.

Congrats, Paul! Thank you for your hard work and dedication for Kottke Trucking!

Kurt Kottke with Paul Wright.

Thank you for #BleedingBlue for a decade now, Brandon!

Apparently, we hit gold ten years ago here at Kottke Trucking. A little over a month ago, we celebrated the 10-year anniversary of Sue Krumrey #BleedingBlue with us. Now today, we get to celebrate another 10-year milestone!!

May marks the 10-year anniversary for Brandon Antonsen being full-time with us at Kottke Trucking. Brandon actually started with us in 2008 while completing mechanics courses, became full-time in 2009 and the rest is history.

Thank you, Brandon, for being a pivotal cornerstone to our shop and the Kottke Trucking family. Brandon is our longest tenured mechanic in the Buffalo Lake shop and we thank him for #BleedingBlue with us, and putting up with us, for over a decade now.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

Kory Kottke (far left), Kyle Kottke (middle right) and Dustin Berger (far right) presenting Brandon Antonsen (middle left) with his 10 year service award.

Audree Ginsburg and Tyler Milbrandt named All Mustang recipients

Every spring, Kottke Trucking teams up with Buffalo Lake – Hector – Stewart High School to recognize one female and one male from the graduating class with the ALL Mustang award. On Wednesday, May 15, graduating seniors Audree Ginsburg and Tyler Milbrandt were presented with the ALL Mustang awards at the 8th annual ceremony held at Zion Lutheran Church in Buffalo Lake. In addition to the award, Kottke Trucking presented both winners with a $500 scholarship.

The ceremony honors the monthly winners from the past academic year who have had great achievements and shown excellence in athletics, leadership and learning.

This year’s monthly winners were: August Bergstrom, Victoria Garcia, Audree Ginsburg, Agusta Grams, Conner Hettinger, Sara Kottke, Braden McColley, Tyler Milbrandt, Jessica Novotny, Kimberly Novotny, Grant Peirce, Alyssa Petersen, Nathan Schultz, Luke Schulze and Emily VanderVoort.

Kottke Trucking would like to thank the following for making the ceremony possible: 18 Wheelers Walk In The Park team for the meal preparation, Dan Krause & Dustin Wright for being the master of ceremonies, past ALL Mustang recipient Ashley Petersen for being our guest speaker and the various coaches and advisors at BLHS who voted for the ALL Mustang awards throughout the year. Another hearty thanks to the friends, family and everybody in attendance for making the event a success.

The past ALL Mustang winners are: 2012 – Jessica Kalenberg and Taylor Broderious, 2013 – Carly Schmalz and Baron Juhl, 2014 – Rebecca Ebbers and Christopher Schmidt, 2015 – Ashley Petersen and Scott Buboltz, 2016 – Mariah Paulson and Trey Weispfennig, 2017 – Keighly Daak and Jake Watkins, 2018 – Anna Buboltz and Brock Luthens.

Pictured below: the two recipients, Audree Ginsburg and Tyler Milbrandt, with Kyle, Kurt and Kory Kottke. Also, a picture of this year’s monthly winners.

My Favorite Painting Is In The Warehouse

If you’ve never seen The Sound of Music, well, the reviews are in and they say it’s pretty good. The 1965 musical drama staring Julie Andrews features a song called “My Favorite Things” in which she, in fact, talks about a few of her favorite things. I’d like to take a moment to talk about some of my favorite things.

My favorite things might not be raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, but most of my favorite things are pretty typical for a 25-year-old from God’s Country, Minnesota. I love me some Garth Brooks, some basketball and a good ol’ cheeseburger. I don’t know if the young ones still use this phrase, but I’m basic.

Except when it comes to my favorite painting. As someone fairly basic, you’d probably expect me to pick a Picasso or Monet, but my all-time favorite painting is a one of a kind. To say it’s rare would probably be an understatement, because I don’t expect many people to know the painting.

So where can you see this one of a kind painting? It is locked securely away in our… umm… it is in our warehouse. Yeah, it’s in our warehouse.

As a math-challenged child, numbers were not exactly my friend. Remembering them was hard and you could add them and subtract them and it was all too much. What isn’t hard for children to grasp on to is pictures and visuals… a painting.

My grandpa was not a painter. I saw his attempt at some coloring pages with my little cousins and I can assure you he was not exactly an artist. He did, though, possess my favorite painting.

When I was a child, on the back of Grandpa’s truck there was a beautiful painting. It had a road leading into the sunset of a western sky and it had the words “Tough to kick… but this is it!” written on it. It was beautiful, but the painting’s beauty isn’t what made it my favorite painting. It’s my favorite painting because that meant Grandpa was home.

I remember whenever I’d be in our yard for whatever reason, I’d be searching for that painting. That beacon of beauty that meant that my grandpa was home. That painting meant it was time to find grandpa for coffee which always really meant a burger at the Straw Hat. That painting meant that one of my favorite people was back home.

That painting was on my grandpa’s final truck, hence the saying on it. Well, kind of. It was supposed to be his final truck until he drove that one so much he had to get a new one…. and then he drove that one so much that he had to get yet another one after that. He had three final trucks. If you knew Duane Kottke, that shouldn’t surprise you one lick.

That painting might be faded now, but the memories are still in vivid color to me. Memories of him are what I hold on to… When I’m feeling sad, I simply remember my favorite things and then I don’t feel so bad.

The painting on the back of Duane’s “final truck”.

Thank you for #BleedingBlue for a decade now, Sue!

You have seen this year that we have introduced the phrase, and the hashtag, #BleedingBlue in a lot of the things that we do. While we have been practicing what bleeding blue is for, well, over 80 years now, we have been trying to put it into words for only the past few months.

Bleeding blue is about being dedicated, being a team player, doing it the right way, doing it with integrity and doing it all with family values firmly in mind. Bleeding blue is our core values wrapped up into one phrase.

If you took bleeding blue and personified it, it would result in Sue Krumrey. She is so in-step with our core values that you can tell that she has been bleeding blue for a while now. In fact, she’s officially been a part of the Kottke Trucking family for 10 years now.

We’d like to take this moment to recognize Sue for everything that she does for Kottke Trucking. We could go on and on, but after all these years we know we’ve probably already written way too much if she had her way about it.

Thank you, Sue, for bleeding blue for a decade now, for being a great team player and, most importantly, being a great member of the Kottke Trucking family.

Thank you, thank you, thank you!

The Kottke Family

Kurt Kottke presenting Sue Krumrey with her Ten Year Service Award.

(800) 248-2623 (320) 833-5385

Kottke Trucking, Inc.