Wreaths Across America's Trucking Tributes Presents Brown Dog Carriers and Logistics
Just before starting the company, Graig attended the Mid-America Truck show and met Rob Worcester. “I told Rob when I got my trucks on the road, he’d be hearing from me,” said Graig. “I called that July.
Wreaths Across America's Trucking Tributes Presents Brown Dog Carriers and Logistics
Darrell Pardy was born in Canada and became a United States citizen in 2005. He had lived in Maine for twenty-five years before hearing about a national, nonprofit organization called Wreaths Across America, also based in Maine. Darrell’s business background was in seafood, and after selling his seafood company, the investor and entrepreneur got involved with another Mainer, Graig Morin, to create Brown Dog Carriers & Logistics out of Biddeford, Maine. “I really liked Graig. I liked his work ethic and community involvement. It was a great match,” Darrell shared. “Brown Dog Carriers started about three years ago with two trucks and hauls general freight throughout New England. The company has grown organically to seven trucks and eighteen drivers by focusing on great customer service and treating our employees well.”
Just before starting the company, Graig attended the Mid-America Truck show and met Rob Worcester. “I told Rob when I got my trucks on the road, he’d be hearing from me,” said Graig. “I called that July, and the first year we took a load of veterans’ wreaths to the Bourne National Cemetery in Massachusetts. The next year, we were able to transport a load to Arlington National Cemetery.”
One of the things that both Graig and Darrell agreed on when they started Brown Dog was their commitment to the community. “65 percent of our staff are veterans, Darrell explained. “I’ve got to say that our community service projects today are as a result of our commitment to Wreaths Across America. Wreaths Across America inspired us to partner with other nonprofit organizations serving veterans.”
Their commitment to veterans’ causes comes naturally for both men and their wives. “I’ve had many family members serve in conflicts that the U.S. and Canada have fought together, so I’m very familiar with military service,” Darrell explains. “I didn’t appreciate my citizenship until I spent a week in Normandy several years ago. I was on the beaches and in the cemeteries there considering the sacrifice, not only of American soldiers but of Canadian and British soldiers as well; the allied effort was immense. It’s one thing to become an American citizen and go through that process, but it’s another thing to actually start to live it and breathe it, and Wreaths Across America has helped me do that. I was blown away to see how the wreaths were made, and the commitment to get them to these cemeteries. It was incredible to hear the drivers, a lot of them veterans, talk about how much it means to them to be a part of the effort.”
Graig’s father-in-law was a Marine who served in Vietnam, his great-grandfather and grandfather served in WW II, and his sister currently serves as a Captain in the Maine National Guard. “I never served myself, so this is my way of giving back,” Graig shared. “I’m proud to be a part of the Wreaths Across America mission to remember, honor, and teach with hundreds of other trucking companies.
Brown Dog Carriers and Logistics supports K9’s on the Front Line and their trip to Arlington National Cemetery with the veterans’ wreaths helped add up for that veteran’s service organization! Brown Dog donates .01 for each mile their trucks travel throughout the year. Additionally, Brown Dog supports Boots2Rootsanother Maine-based nonprofit serving veterans.
Brown Dog Carriers is extending a “Helping Paw” during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. You can hear the full interview with Darrell and Graig on Trucking Tributes heard exclusively on Wreaths Across America Radio on Tuesdays at 11:00 AM and again at 4:00 PM EST.
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Wreath Sponsorship
Hiring Our Heroes (CORP001) |48172|
Did you know that Wreaths Across America now offers recurring sponsorships? You can select the occurrence and cancel or pause anytime! Register now by completing this form! (https://tinyurl.com/n735zrbr)
What does it mean to sponsor a wreath? It means you are supporting a yearlong mission to Remember the fallen, Honor those who serve, and Teach the next generation the value of freedom. Your sponsorship will support the new and existing programs developed to share the mission. And, it will place a wreath to honor an American hero at one of more than 3,700 participating locations this year on National Wreaths Across America Day – a day set aside to lay gathers as Americans with the same goal.
We can’t do that without your support, though. Your sponsorship will ensure a hand-crafted wreath of all-American balsam and hand-tied with a red velvet bow here in Columbia Falls, Maine. It will then be sent to one of our participating locations, where a volunteer will place it on the marker of a hero. That volunteer will then “say their name” to ensure that the legacy of duty, service, and sacrifice is never forgotten.
So, what does it mean to sponsor a wreath? It means you have the opportunity to join a grateful nation in saying “thank you” to those who stepped up to serve.
*Please Note: Specific locations designated as "ceremonial-only" accept a limited number of sponsorships. Any additional sponsorships received beyond those used for the ceremony will be distributed to other locations.