Amy M. loves being a part of NFI and working in the finance department — but what really makes the company special for her is the emphasis and honor the company places on those who have served in the U.S. armed forces.
“I was born in Arizona, but I would say I’m from New Jersey. I’ve lived all over everywhere from Arizona to Florida to Tennessee to Indiana,” she told The Trucker. “I was a military brat, since my dad was in the Army.”
Amy’s familial ties to the U.S. military go much deeper, she said, noting that her uncle was in the Navy, and both her grandfather and her husband served in the Air Force.
“There was a lot of moving. Our first seven years of marriage, we moved 13 times,” she said. “Once he received his honorable discharge from the military, we settled down.”
Unable to follow the family tradition of serving in the military due to a health condition, Amy had to make a different path for herself — one that started when she was just a child.
“I worked as a mechanic as a kid, and I worked for a fleet management company for years,” she said.
Five years ago, her journey led her to NFI.
“I started in the mechanics field, in the maintenance field and then moved to compliance. I moved to finance about two years ago,” she said.
Because her family is so deeply rooted in the military Amy says she wanted to find a way to still be involved in helping veterans in whatever way she could.
Veteran Engagement Team
“I’ve been very passionate about it,” she said. “Four years ago at NFI, we created what was called the Veteran Advisory Council. After a couple of years, it grew into what they call VET — the Veteran Engagement Team.”
The VET serves as an employee resource group for veterans.
“We have a portal out there that has transportation and military apprenticeships, and we have designated days of observance to honor veterans,” she said.
Veteran Resource Page
The program schedules special events and observances throughout the year to honor military veterans. In addition, NFI has a veteran resource page that current and prospective NFI employees can access to find information about navigating benefits like mental health, relationship management, financial management and other topics.
“Just within the past few months, we created cards that have an inscription on the front, and on the back there’s a QR code that will take whoever scans it directly to that resource page,” Amy said. “They can literally carry this in their pocket, whether they’re a driver, a manager or whatever, and have access to those resources 24 hours a day.”
Annual Donation Drive
NFI also sponsors a donation drive, something Amy believes is important — but she’s also quick to point out that the drive is only one of many steps NFI takes to help veterans. The company’s resources are not only for veterans preparing to transition to civilian work, but also those struggling with PTSD, financial management and a variety of other issues.
“We want to make sure that we’re there for them, and we can provide them with the resources and guidance regardless of how long or how recent they may have served,” Amy said.
Fellow NFI employee and military veteran Dustin S. echoes Amy’s deep appreciation of steps the company takes to support former service members.
“NFI’s veterans initiatives hit especially close to home for me,” Dustin said. “I’m a Marine Corps veteran myself.”
Like Amy, Dustin was born into a military family — his parents were active-duty Marines.
“My stepson is currently active-duty Navy and is stationed in Groton, Connecticut. My other stepson is active-duty Air Force and currently stationed in Jordan, right between Iran and Israel,” he said. “For all of those reasons, I participate heavily in the annual Veterans Donation Drive. This is my third consecutive year and is very much a grass-roots thing. Year over year, it grows significantly.”
During the NFI’s 2023 donation drive, close to 100 gifts were purchased on the Amazon registry. This year, the donations are already at 140 and it only recently went live, Dustin says. To participate in NFI’s 2024 drive, click here.
Placing Value on Service
The value NFI places on its employees as well as on the nation’s military personnel and veterans is important to Amy.
“When I decided to make a career change five years ago, this type of values was one of my requirements — how they treated their employees,” she said. “A lot of companies out there talk about their commitment to their local areas and to their employees, but not all of them walked that walk.”
In addition to partnering with organizations like Hiring Our Heroes, the Department of Defense Skillbridge program, Wreaths Across America and others, she says NFI is seeking other programs that will allow the company to lend a hand to help veterans.
“It’s the least we can do for the sacrifices that they’ve made for us day in and day out,” she said.
“Veterans are quite literally the reason we’re able to sleep soundly,” Dustin said. “Our veterans made a conscious decision (post-Vietnam) to defend our country from all enemies, foreign and domestic, and it’s of great importance we do our part to make sure those veterans are shown our appreciation.”
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
