Seriously, next time you're looking for trees or plants to landscape the yard, look for stuff from Oregon Pride. They take pride in everything they do and it shows....from the look of their facility and their plants, to the attitudes of all their workers. Everyone, from the supervisors on down to the folks who load the truck, all have a smile on their face and a pleasant attitude.

The supervisors have a great relationship with the workers....unlike some places that treat them like a bunch of Mexican slaves, the supervisors treat them with the respect they deserve. I was there for the lunch break....and before they went back to work, they all stood in a circle where the supervisors spent a few minutes "briefing" everyone about what was going on, who was next in line for loading, etc....THANKING them for the great job they were doing, and then leading them all in a series of "stretching exercises" to get them warmed up to hop back up in the trucks and sling plants.

Anyone who's hauled nursery loads knows it can be a pain in the #####. Takes forever to load because they actually build "shelves" in the trailer to hold all the plants. Pain to unload because the driver usually has to "tailgate" the entire load....some trees can weigh 150-200 lbs a piece. Plus, most nursery loads are multiple stop- I've had as many as 11 on one truck. And THEN you've got to clean out all the wood and plant crap from the trailer and get a washout to the tune of $200. Oregon Pride is the only nursery I've hauled for, that really attempts to make it worthwhile. They at least make it very clear how much the driver is appreciated.

They have showers and a decent driver's lounge with a TV.
They have A COURTESY CAR....for the truck drivers to use, if they want to go into town for lunch, or if they've got any shopping to do while the truck is being loaded.
A "roach coach" (mobile catering wagon) shows up around noontime if you prefer to stick around the nursery.
And when you're done, they'll even give you an Oregon Pride T-shirt in your choice of color.

The bills are all organized, making it very easy to understand what goes where, which order your stops are loaded in. There's a "cover letter" stapled to the top of your stack of bills, not only explaining the company's policy regarding driver communication with the customer, the temperature recorder, and what to do with the bills when you complete the load....but they even make sure to put IN WRITING....how much the driver's role in customer service is appreciated, and that without US, they wouldn't even have a business.

You won't find Oregon Pride plants at Wal Mart, I don't think even Lowes sells them...gotta go to a real nursery to find them, but I think it's worth the trip & perhaps the extra money. This is a top-notch place....if ALL shippers treated their workers & truckers like this, the world would be a better place

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Us & The Dogs

-I travel a lot; I hate having my life disrupted by routine. ~Caskie Stinnett

#### you sold me. Where can I buy stock?

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I'm gonna kill the next SOB who tells me I look stressed out.

--Unknown

I'll take a shirt as long as it isnt pink!!!

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