CHARLESTON — A West Virginia law firm has been helping those interested in obtaining their Class B commercial driver's license through a partnership with CDL Assist.
The partnership is for the Church Bus Driver Scholarship Program.
Robert A. Campbell of Farmer, Cline & Campbell, a law firm in West Virginia, said the firm teamed up with CDL Assist after its owner, Fred Hart, noticed a shortage of church buses and bus drivers.
"Fred has a passion for the church bus ministry and he trains drivers every day who are interested in obtaining a CDL through CDL Assist," Campbell said in an interview with The West Virginia Record. "To do this they need what is called a Class B CDL with a passenger endorsement."
Hart, who has worked in the bus ministry since he was 15, met his wife, Shelly, through ministry and has a deep passion for this ministry and wanted to help the ministry grow as it has been experiencing a shortage.
Campbell said sometimes a church bus is the only way some people are able to get to church and this CDL would help people be able to take on this role.
"If someone wants to go to church, it's important they are able to get there," Campbell said. "This could help those that don't have any other way."
Campbell said they hope CDL Assisnt can train many more in the future through the program.
"We're not involved in the training, but we pay for the training," Campbell said. "Fred will call us and let us know that someone is interested in the program and we will provide the scholarship for them."
Campbell said those who successfully complete the training and pass an examination by an independent state examiner, receive a Class B CDL with the necessary passenger endorsement and can drive church buses, as well as other vehicles that are part of the same class.
"The intent of the scholarship we offer is to benefit West Virginia churches and the communities they serve," Campbell said. "So far eight drivers have completed the program. We are hopeful more will take advantage of this program in the coming year."
Campbell said a side benefit of the program is that those who complete the training and pass the examination could also drive different Class B vehicles, such as gravel trucks or coal trucks, and could potentially get a job with that certification.
"We'd love to see more people go through this process," Campbell said. "We hope to help more people in the future as well."
Campbell said they have not put a cut-off on how many they will provide the scholarship for, as they just want to help as many as they can.
"We like helping the communities we work in and we thought this was a perfect opportunity to do something good for the communities of West Virginia," Campbell said.
The law firm of Farmer Cline and Campbell has offices in Charleston, Beckley and Morgantown.
CDL Assist is located in Beckley.