Ask any trucking company what the most important part of their company’s operation is and you will almost receive the same answer: “Drivers and Fleet Maintenance”. A company is as only good as its drivers, and the good drivers cannot perform to their ability without the equipment to do so. Managing and maintaining a fleet brings many challenges. In 2017, StoneBridge Trucking was experiencing a significant amount of growth in which farming out its maintenance to a 3rd party shop was no longer efficient nor responsible. Simply, StoneBridge CEO Shane Kennedy needed help. “I needed a guy to oversee the entire maintenance operation. I needed someone who was trustworthy, experienced, efficient, honest, and took initiative. Charlie Mann was a close friend of my father and someone who I personally liked, but I had no idea whether he would be the correct hire for the StoneBridge Maintenance Program. He not only was the correct hire, but he was the perfect hire.” Over the last year, Charlie Mann literally has been the “GLUE THAT KEPT US MOVING”.
Charlie Mann was born in Louisville, KY in 1954 and his family quickly moved to Lebanon, In thereafter. The son of John and Nita, his father joined the Navy at the age of 15 years old and later became a truck driver, while his mother Nita stayed at home to raise his 5 brothers and sister. In 1972, he graduated high school and worked at Kroger to pay his was through community college. During the summer of 1975, he continued his education by transferring to the University of Kentucky and would proudly graduate in 77’ with a degree in Agriculture. Not only is he proud of his Wildcat education, he is extremely proud of the process of graduating. “I worked my entire way through and completely paid my own way. I worked hard and am proud of what I accomplished.”
With a degree in Agriculture, Charlie would spend many years doing what he was educated to do: Working in the midwestern farm system. Starting in 1980, he managed the Pumphrey’s Hog Farm while he and his then wife Joanne started and raised a family. They have two boys together. His son John has 5 children and serves in the Navy specializing in Nuclear Propulsion. His son David is a US Army Captain and has a baby girl.
In 1993, Charlie went to work for Farm Bureau COOP as a Swine Service Specialist. In 1997 he continued his career in Frankfort, until the farm was sold in 2010. At that point he worked in Greenfield until he joined StoneBridge in 2017. When Charlie joined StoneBridge, he was ready for a new path. “I was ready for a change. I wanted a different pace and given my relationship with Butch Kennedy, I felt StoneBridge would be a good fit.” In 2010, the Frankfort farm where Charlie worked was shutdown for 6 months and Charlie joined StoneBridge as a driver during that time. “I had a good feel for what StoneBridge was about and felt comfortable from day one given my history with them.”
What caught Charlie off guard was the amount of growth StoneBridge was experiencing when he arrived. In 2010, StoneBridge had 4 box trucks with a team of 8 drivers while Butch Kennedy ran the entire operation. In July 2017, Stonebridge had 10 trucks with a team of 15 drivers. “It has a become an energy driven company. Parts are always moving. When the phone rings, I never know what to expect. You must be flexible and be prepared to learn something new. One second things will be quiet and then all chaos will break out as the customers start calling for expedites.”
For a small company experiencing growth, the maintenance job can be both frustrating and unforgiving at times and you must have a positive attitude. StoneBridge Operations Manager Brad Stephens quickly noticed why Charlie was fit for the position: “Charlie always has a wonderful attitude. Nothing phases him. Regardless of the situation, he always handles everything with poise. He also elevates the entire mood at StoneBridge in a positive way. He is always telling a joke and laughing, regardless of whether we get the joke or not.”
When orientation takes place for a new StoneBridge team member, our business is always described as “ORGANIZED CHAOS”. In the world of expediting, the job of StoneBridge is to always be part of the solution for a customer’s problem. We are always on call requiring a lot from the mechanic. Over the last year, Charlie Mann has always been on call. He has been on call to do a last-second fix to a truck. He has been on call to do a last-minute run when there were no other StoneBridge drivers available. He has been on call to take a phone call at 1am in the morning when a StoneBridge operator is experiencing mechanical issues. Simply, Charlie Mann is ALWAYS on call and ALWAYS answers the call.
“Charlie Mann is my friend first and foremost. As a friend, I truly love him dearly. He is a wonderful person. Along with this, I cannot imagine how StoneBridge would have kept it together with their growth over the last year without him. Given the amount of development we have experienced, things could have and should have easily fallen apart, but they didn’t. They didn’t because Charlie was part of the team and helped in more ways than we even know.” ~ StoneBridge Founder Butch Kennedy
