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 To Be Great – To Care “Peanuts”
One of the ultimate compliments is to be acknowledged for being a
positive distinguishing influence on someone’s life. It is often too easy to think
that this honor is reserved for people who have achieved great fame or wealth.
I am going to ask you to think about those people who have been a positive
influence in your life – someone who made you feel special when you were a
child or someone who made a lasting impression on you.
My wife, Janice, sent the following to me, and I thought I would share it.
It illustrates the point far better than I ever could.
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The following is the philosophy of Charles Schultz, the creator of the
“Peanuts” comic strip. You don’t have to actually answer the questions. Just
read the text straight through and you will get the point:
1. Name the five wealthiest people in the world.
2. Name the last five Heisman trophy winners.
3. Name the last five winners of the Miss America pageant.
4. Name ten people who have won the Nobel or Pulitzer Prize.
5. Name the last half dozen Academy Award winners for best actor
and actress.
6. Name the last decade’s worth of World Series winners.
How did you do?
The point is, none of us remember the headliners of yesterday. These are no
second-rate achievers. They are the best in their fields. But the applause dies. Awards
tarnish. Achievements are forgotten. Accolades and certificates are buried with
their owners.
Here’s another quiz. See how you do on this one:
1. List a few teachers who aided your journey through high school.
2. Name three friends who have helped you through a difficult time.
3. Name five people who have taught you something worthwhile.
4. Think of a few people who have made you feel appreciated and special.
5. Think of five people you enjoy spending time with.
Easier? The lesson: The people who make a difference in your life are not the
ones with the most credentials, the most money, or the most awards. They are
the ones who care.
— Graham Bennett
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Graham Bennett, President
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Welcome "Huff" to the QOC Family
All of us at Quality Oil Company
would like to extend a very warm
welcome to the former Huffman Oil
employees that are now an integral
part of the QOC family.
Beginning in December and
concluding in March, Quality Oil
purchased 12 convenience stores
from Huffman Oil.
With the purchase, we added
approximately 110 new members to
our team. The most impressive thing
throughout this whole purchase
process has been the positive attitude
of the store managers and their staff
who have accepted the many changes
that have been thrust upon them.
With the addition of these stores,
we now have a network of 44 Quality
Marts. Of the 12 former Huff stores,
six have hot food deli operations, four have car washes, and
all have diesel available. There are sure to be many exciting
changes for the new as well as existing QM stores.
Again, welcome former Huffman employees. We’re
happy to have you as part of the QOC family!
— Tim Lowman
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Over the next six months, we will change out point-of-sale systems and add Quality
Mart logos at each location. |
Quality Plus Adds Cherokee Facility
The newest Quality Plus facility opened in Cherokee on
February 15, 2008. It is located near Harrah’s Cherokee
Casino in North Carolina’s Smokey Mountains. Harrison
Galloway, who transferred from the Burnsville Quality Plus,
is the manager.
If you are ever in the area and need a pick-me-up, be
sure to stop in.
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Among those who staffed the booth at the Southeastern Trade Show
were (left to right) Danny Stroud, Nicole Spillman, Buddy Jenkins,
and Clyde Castleberry.
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Reliable Tank Line Exhibits at Trade Show
Employees of Reliable Tank Line, LLC participated in the
Southeastern Trade Show in Myrtle Beach, SC for the first
time in Reliable history. There were 569 vendors set up in the
Convention Center to show off the new equipment for the
coming year. The show is designed to cover the North Carolina,
South Carolina and Virginia oil jobbers, dealers and
petroleum carriers.
During the show, Reliable was able to talk with customers
that they serve now as well as several customers that are looking
for new carriers to haul their product.
Buddy Jenkins, Vice President of Operations, and Danny
Stroud, Senior Vice President of Operations, had the
opportunity to meet customers who frequent our terminal every
year. “This has been a wonderful opportunity to see many
customers and competitors under one roof,” said Clyde
Castleberry, sales representative.
“Thanks to Graham Bennett for taking time to spend in
our booth greeting clients. And a special thanks to Nicole
Spillman and Annette Wagoner for helping to arrange a
booth that would be attractive to the hundreds of people
passing by.“
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Reliable Tank Line’s Quality on the JobOne of Reliable Tank Line’s strongest selling points is
the quality of gasoline tankers we run. Quality Reliable
tankers hold up to 9,200 gallons of gasoline, though we
actually carry no more than 9,000 gallons at a time. The
tanker is
divided into five separate compartments, allowing us to
carry any combination of fuels. A single tanker can haul
regular unleaded, mid-grade, premium, diesel, and fuel oil.
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Delivering Propane
How do we do it? One of our Reliable tankers hauls propane
from a storage facility in Apex to the home office in Winston-
Salem. The propane is stored in a large 30-thousand-gallon tank.
For delivery, it is hauled in a propane bobtail truck, which the
driver fills in Winston-Salem before driving to our customer’s
home. The calibration of each truck is checked regularly to
ensure that the amount of propane we deliver to the customer
is measured accurately. 
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Sales Summit 2008
Mission Accomplished! Fourteen sales cadets from across
the Southeast attended QOC’s 2008 Sales Summit. The
summit took the form of a Boot Camp for the Hospitality
Sales Team this year. The QOC bunker in Winston-Salem
was the site of all the discussions, idea sharing, team
building and a course of missions and tasks to help everyone
grow and develop as stronger team members.
It was time well spent for all who attended.
A successful man is one who can lay a firm
foundation with the bricks others have thrown at him.
– David Brinkley |
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Spirit Winner
Donna Varner is QOC’s latest
Spirit of Hampton Award winner.
Coworkers who nominated her for
the award described her winning
ways with hotel guests:
We consider Donna our Spirit
cheerleader for the hotel. She has the
most upbeat and quirky personality.
She can oftentimes be seen standing
at the front desk or walking through
the breakfast area in the morning
wearing some outrageous head gear:
during the month of November, it was
a turkey and during December she
wore reindeer antlers.
The unexpected delights and the
humor she invokes among our travelers
are priceless. Guests trying to
hurry out the door look at Donna
and stop to chat for a second, smiling
from ear to ear – just enough time for
us to make sure their stay was perfect. |
Thanks and congratulations
to Donna Varner of the Sales
Department at the Hampton Inn
- Lawrenceville. Donna is
QOC’s most recent Spirit of
Hampton Award winner. |
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2007 Hampton Lighthouse/Connie Awards
Conrad Hilton, the founder of
Hilton Hotels, was a true pioneer
in the hotel business. His ideas,
commitment to hospitality, and
management of early hotels set
the stage for today’s hospitality
business.
Lighthouse/Connie Awards
are given each year to recognize
the best of the best hotels across
all brands in the Hilton family.
The Hampton brand selects
the top five Hampton Inn hotels
and the top two Hampton &
Suites hotels to be honored as
Lighthouse /Connie Award winners.
Four Hampton facilites
owned by Quality Oil Company
won these prestigious awards.
Congratulations to Atlanta,
Christiansburg, Columbia and
Winston-Salem for being among
this year’s winners. |
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You Make the Difference Real
Shell’s CVP (Customer Value Proposition) program has
a new name... the “Go Further” program is now “You
Make the Difference Real.” This is how the program
works. Shell stations are mystery shopped and evaluated
on the following categories:
- Entering the Site… Overall appearance of the
location, such as cleanliness, landscaping, and
proper signage.
- Fueling Experience… Making sure the pump
islands are stocked, clean, and pumps are
running efficiently and accurately.
- Customer Service… The appearance of the
staff – from cleanliness and proper uniforms, to
wearing name tags. The staff is also evaluated on
politeness and job and product knowledge.
- Store Experience… Building exterior and
interior are evaluated on cleanliness, product
displays, credit and gift card displays.
- Restrooms… Ensures the restrooms are clean
and well stocked.
- Additional Service Offerings… If the site has
a car wash or mechanic bays, these are evaluated.
Twenty-three QOC franchised Shell Dealers worked to
achieve top scores in a regional competition.
The following stations scored 100%:
Bragtown Shell, Durham
Daniel Boone Shell, Hillsborough
Crabtree Shell, Raleigh
Edenton Shell, Edenton
I-40 Shell, Kernersville |
The following station scored 99%:
Eastgate Shell, Raleigh |
The following stations scored 97%:
109 Shell, Winston Salem
Oldtown Shell, Winston Salem
Lingles Store, Statesville
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Congratulations from the QOC staff and management.
Thank you for an exceptional image presentation.
Summer Safe Driving Tip:
Summers are hard on batteries. Take time to top
off the water level, clean the terminals, and check
the battery cables regularly. Stay safe! |
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Who are you going to call?
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Safe Driving Awards
These Winston-Salem Reliable Tank Line drivers received safe
driving awards for having achieved one year of accident and
incident free driving. Congratulations! Back row: Ed Denton,
Chris Hayes, Ken Moorefield, Terry McGuire, David Marler,
George Taylor. Front row: Robin Robinson, George Jones, Mike
Hunter, Reggie Roberts, Rex Wallace with David Griggs,
Winston-Salem Terminal Manager.
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In Memorium
Norris “Woody” Weavil
Nov. 28, 1946-Dec. 25, 2007 |
Jamie Westmoreland
March 2, 1965-Dec. 26, 2007 |
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Quality Oil Company, LLC
PO Box 2736
Winston-Salem, NC 27102
336.722.3441
FAX 336.721.9527
We welcome your suggestions. You may email them to bfoster@qocnc.com
Quality Oil Newsletter Committee:
Brenda Foster, Administrative Assistant
Annette Wagoner, Purchasing Agent
Danny Brown, V.P. Service Stations
Haywood Stroupe, Sales Supervisor
Lisa Dodson, Hotel Accounting Supervisor
Nancy Puckett, Administrative Assistant
Shawn Cline, Safety and Loss Manager
Jean Sawyer, District Manager, Quality Plus
Rob Hill, VP Hotel Operations
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