Lights on the Hill 2018 — supporting trucking families

The 2018 convoy brought together 371 trucks and outlined plans to help families after a truck driver’s death.

Original ACT archive feature. Images from the ACT archive; no individual photographer is identified in the retained feature.

With 237 trucks from Brisbane and 134 from Toowoomba this year’s Lights on the Hill Convoy weekend drew in a respectable crowd with 371 trucks in total.

Numbers were down a little but the essence of the event and the generosity it invoked meant much needed funds were raised to both maintain the Memorial Wall as well as give a generous donation to Drought Angels, an organisation helping drought affected farmers.

The LOTH organisation also announced it is changing its focus and wants to directly help families of truckies that have died on the road, when the families need the support the most.

Lights on the Hill 2018 — supporting trucking families — archive photograph 2 — The Willman family. Image from Australian Custom Trucks Issue 17; individual photographer not identified in the retained feature.

“What we hope to do is give back directly to the families that are affected, especially straight after a death,” LOTH Secretary Juanita Johnson said.

She said people in the LOTH organisation have lived through this stressful situation and know only too well the impact it has on a family.

As well as the emotional impact of the situation, the simple everyday things like buying food can impact the household, especially if the truckie is the main income earner.

Lights on the Hill 2018 — supporting trucking families — archive photograph 3 — Johnny “The Ferret” Moran. Image from Australian Custom Trucks Issue 17; individual photographer not identified in the retained feature.

She said getting a Centrelink benefit in this situation can take up to six weeks and LOTH is aiming to relieve the pressure on the family by providing the basics, including things like food vouchers, fuel vouchers, rent and ensuring families have enough to allow the children to continue to go to school.

She also said the LOTH committee want to pay for plaques of truck drivers killed in the year to be put on the Memorial Wall. It seems LOTH has a clear agenda for the organisation and plan to do even more good work.

Rear Vision: where are they now?

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