Congressional Representative Mike Kelly honored a Genesee and Wyoming Rail employee for his nearly 40 years in the field.
Thursday afternoon at the Butler Yard and Shops, Jerry Vest was given the Pennsylvania 16th Congressional District Community Champion award. Vest has been working in the rail industry since 1986 and considers this award was a humbling honor.
“Finding out that they wanted to give me this recognition is quite humbling. I mean, it’s funny representing any company in Washington D.C. and Harrisburg it’s similar to politicians in that it has a negative connotation,” Vest said.
Vest had left Western Pennsylvania at one point in his career and when he had the opportunity to return to Western Pennsylvania he jumped but his father doesn’t wasn’t too excited when Vest told him.
“I told my father that [Genesee and Wyoming] hired me to run government affairs. There was this dead silence on the phone; it was like driving a wood stake through his heart,” Vest joked. “My dad said ‘Are you going to be a lobbyist?'”
Genesse and Wyoming is celebrating its 125 years in operations this year.