America’s Road Team Driver Tony Sifford Dies in Crash

Tony Sifford, 41, an America’s Road Team captain since 2007, died Sept. 24 near Ruston, La., from injuries sustained in a highway accident that day. His FedEx Ground partner, Rodney Palmer, 38, died the following day.

A resident of Hillsville, Va., Sifford made frequent runs between Virginia and Dallas for FedEx’s truck-based parcel carrier. Beyond his work as an owner-operator, he was deeply involved in industry affairs, whether testifying on Capitol Hill on trucking issues, recruiting new drivers to the industry, instructing people on highway safety or participating in the National Truck Driving Championships.

“Tony Sifford was devoted to the trucking industry, accumulating 1.8 million accident-free miles during his 14-year career,” said Bill Graves, president of American Trucking Associations. “But more importantly, Tony was a part of the ATA family, a dedicated Road Team captain and an amazing person.”

America’s Road Team is an ATA-sponsored group of drivers who advocate for highway safety through events such as Share the Road.

ATA said Sifford had volunteered in the Trucker Buddy program, which sets up pen-pal relationships between drivers and elementary school classes. He also taped a video presentation for Ford Motor Co. earlier this year to recruit laid-off auto workers to work as commercial vehicle drivers.

Sifford testified this year to members of both the U.S. House of Representatives and the Senate on the effects of high diesel fuel prices.

“Tony made such a strong impact on so many people with his knowledge and passion for the industry,” said Elisabeth Barna, an ATA vice president who worked with Sifford on the Road Team.

He is survived by his wife, Gena; a daughter, Hannah; a son, Isaac; and his parents, Leonard and Janice. A memorial fund for the benefit of his children will be administered at the Grayson National Bank in Hillsville.