Moving day has finally arrived, and you’re ready to pick up yourPenske truck – so now what? Here’s what you can expect.
As soon as you drive onto the Penske Truck Rental lot, you’ll see what we call the ready line of bright yellow 12-foot, 16-foot, 22-foot, and 26-foot consumer rental trucks, one of which will soon become your very own moving hero.
Some questions might race through your mind: Will all my belongings fit into the truck? Will I be able to drive such a large vehicle? Do I need extra protection for my belongings?
But your worries will diminish as soon as Penske’s friendly, knowledgeable associates greet you upon your arrival. You and a Penske rental expert will discuss the details of your local or one-way contract, as well as drop-off information, rental and cargo coverage options, moving supplies, safe-driving tips, smart travel tips and packing pointers.
Next, the Penske rep will put you more at ease with a walk-through of your vehicle. The rep will demonstrate the truck’s interior features, such as the lights, heating and air conditioning, and radio. Then the truck’s fuel needs (unleaded gasoline vs. diesel fuel), show you how to unlock, open and lock the back door and how to properly use the loading ramp, and demonstrate how to safely use the towing equipment, if applicable to your move.
With all that said and done, you’ll be ready to drive off the lot to officially begin your moving journey.
Penske rental experts offer these additional tips to help make moving day hassle-free:
“We’ll give you as much attention as you need to make you comfortable with your move, but the more you know beforehand, the better prepared you’ll be,” said Nate Hower, a Penske rental sales representative in Lancaster.
By Kandace Wertz
The newest Penske Truck Leasing facilityofficially opened its doors in Garner, N.C. this afternoon as part of a grand opening event.
Located in North Carolina’s Triangle region, near Raleigh, the state-of-the-art 12,000 square-foot building was constructed at a cost of $3.3 million. It sits on 8.5 acres and offers full-service truck leasing, consumer and commercial truck rental and contract maintenance services.
Stated John Crockett, senior vice president – Southeast region, Penske: “Strategically this location allows for access to the major entry points in the Raleigh market. Some of our largest customers in the food and newspaper industries are now within close proximity.”
The town of Garner was instrumental in ensuring the long-term success of this facility.
“There have been a lot of great days in Garner in the last couple of months,” stated Garner mayor Ronnie Williams in his remarks to the grand opening attendees. “We’re very pleased to welcome Penske, with their stellar reputation.”
As Chris Anderholm, area vice president – Carolinas, Penske Truck Leasing, stated: “Ideally, business and government should be able to work together, to help remove any barriers. I could not be more positive about the help that the town of Garner has given us, especially economic development director Tony Beasley. Garner is a very business-friendly place.“
During his ceremony remarks, Anderholm thanked Sen. Richard Stevens, Sen. Dan Blue and Rep. Deborah Ross, Rep. Darren Jackson and Rep. Rosa Gill for sponsoring key legislation that was quickly enacted by the state legislature and signed by the governor earlier this year, to prevent an expansion of the local Triangle Expressway from possibly running through Penske’s facility.
“The town of Garner was strong advocates for both the businesses and residents of Garner when the Turnpike Authority was considering the Red and Pink routes,” said Anderholm.
Situated in the Greenfield South Business Park, there are six service bays, a two-lane fuel island and a wash bay. Expected to employ 15 associates initially, the maintenance shop also uses leading-edge wireless technology that enables Penske’s service technicians to automatically connect vehicles for service with diagnostic and analytic software.
Photo ID, from left to right (top photo): Garner mayor pro-tem Kathy Behringer, Garner mayor Williams, Garner councilman Buck Kennedy, Anderholm, Penske district manager Mike Cox and Penske branch manager Mike Parker and Garner councilman Ken Marshburn. In the second photo, Anderholm speaks at the ribbon cutting.
Photos courtesy of Michael Lentz of Garner Portraits.
By Alen Beljin, from Garner, N.C.
Las Vegas was the next stop June 14 on the “Today” show’s Lend a Hand charity road trip.
With Penske’s rental trucks leading the way, the morning show’s co-host Al Roker presented nearly $1.5 million in donated items to The Culinary Academy of Las Vegas, a nonprofit organization that prepares workers for employment in the dynamic Southern Nevada gaming and hospitality industry through training and education (in the top photo, Roker is preparing for today's broadcast).
John Palfin, Penske’s district rental manager in Las Vegas, coordinated Penske Truck Rental’s local efforts with the “Today” production team. Palfin and fellow Penske associates Diana Wilson, rental sales representative, and Kyle Brennan, assistant district rental manager, drove the trucks to the charity.
“We are excited to be able to participate in an event that gives back to our community and assists those in need,” Palfin said.
Penske is participating in the five-day Lend a Hand series for the seventh consecutive year by donating the use of its rental trucks to deliver donations to various charities.
Al Roker continues the road trip tomorrow in Houston before heading to Birmingham, Ala., and Charleston, W.V., later in the week.
For updates of Al Roker’s five-day trip, be sure to visit the “Move Ahead” blog daily, as well as the “Today” show’s “allDAY” blog and the Penske Truck Rental Facebook page.
Earlier today, NBC 10 Philadelphia visited Penske in Reading, Pa., as Stacey Stauffer interviewed vice president of rental Don Mikes (see second photo) for a story expected to air locally this evening.
By Kandace Wertz
Penske is teaming up again with NBC “Today" for its annual Lend a Hand charity road trip.
“Today" co-host Al Roker and a parade of Penske trucks filled with donations from major corporations will surprise a different charity each morning during the show's live broadcasts June 13-17.
For the past six years, Penske has donated 26-foot consumer trucks to Lend a Hand, a weeklong road trip during which Roker delivers much-needed items to small U.S. charities. “We're happy to respond once again to the 'Today' show's request for assistance with Lend a Hand," said Don Mikes, Penske's vice president of rental. “We take pride in giving back to the community."
Roker will visit the following cities during his goodwill tour:
Penske associates near these cities have been working diligently to aid the NBC production teams with securing trucks, drivers and storage facilities.
For updates of Roker's five-day trip, be sure to visit the “Move Ahead" blog daily next week, as well as the “Today" show's “allDAY" blog and the Penske Truck Rental Facebook page.
By Kandace Wertz
Penske Truck Leasing held a ribbon-cutting ceremony earlier today to commemorate the opening of a new location in the Buffalo, N.Y. suburb of Cheektowaga.
Pictured in the photo are Penske executives, from left: district manager Dwight Kruep; Dan O’Boyle, senior vice president for North Central region; and Great Lakes area vice president Jeff Schoen.
The $7 million state-of-the-art facility is a 14,000 square-foot building housed on eight acres and offers full-service truck leasing, consumer and commercial truck rental and contract maintenance services. It contains four service bays, a two-lane fuel island and an automated wash bay.
The rental office can be reached at 716-681-4106. For all other inquiries, please call 716-824-2244.
The facility was profiled in the Buffalo News, and by various local television stations, including WIVB. Click here to view the complete news release.
By Alen Beljin
