By Al Muskewitz

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – It’s been about six months since Matt Frazier was named Safety Professional of the Year by the Alabama Trucking Association, but he only received his award Monday (Oct. 12).

That’s OK, though. He knows where the man handing out the award lives.

It’s his father.

Tim Frazier came down to the Montgomery Transport offices here Monday to personally hand his son one of the most coveted of ATA awards. Because of COVID-19 restrictions, all of the fleet safety awards this year were announced in a virtual ceremony via Facebook. Since then, ATA leaders have made stops at each of the winners’ place of employment to present the award personally.

It was Matt’s turn Monday.

“Matt Frazier has done just about anything and everything in this business,” Montgomery Entities founder and CEO Rollins Montgomery said. “He has (handled) everything from HR to maintenance to safety and sales – he does what it takes.

“He’s one of the most versatile and loyal employees we have, and certainly a large part of the tremendous success of our company.”

Frazier joined MT in 2011 as one of three founding employees. Under his guidance, the company has grown from 10 trucks to more than several hundred and the organization has spun off various other companies that he also manages. Combined, the MT family of companies has won more than 20 various fleet safety awards from the ATA and other organizations.

Outside of his duties with the company, Frazier has been involved with ATA’s Safety and Maintenance Management Council, serving several officer roles, and has created the Alabama Truck Driving Championship course.

His father won the Safety Professional of the Year award in 2002.

“He’s had a pretty good run,” the elder Frazier told Wright Media at the time of the announcement. “I told the judges going into it we’ve got one entry this year that should he be considered you recheck it and if you decide he wins it you recheck it again. I said you verify upon verify that that is a sound, solid decision because I don’t want anybody saying daddy had any input.

“He probably was grilled as hard as anybody has ever been as far as credentials and looking at all the materials they earned it and earned it on his own. I was proud of him and proud for him more than anything.”

Matt Frazier was one of two MT employees to earn a major fleet safety award this year. Rosko Craig was named Driver of the Year.

“It just speaks to their organization as a whole,” Tim Frazier said. “They have support from the top down. To have a successful operation you have to have that. A lot of companies will tell you safety’s No. 1, safety’s our goal and all that, but at the end of the day when things get tight a lot of times you don’t get that support all the way to the top, but they have that.”

Al Muskewitz is the Editor at Wright Media. He can be reached at musky@wrightmediacorp.com

Photo: Matt Frazier (center) is flanked by his father Tim (right), the Alabama Trucking Association's vice president of safety and compliance, and Montgomery Entities CEO Rollins Montgomery after receiving his ATA Safety Professional of the Year award.

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