Trails Travel Center became the 72nd location in 29 states last weekend to have a Truckstop Ministries chaplaincy program.

A truck driver in search of a Sunday morning service at the truck stop had called Truckstop Ministry’s prayer line in frustration one day because there was no service. The truck stop had once had a volunteer chaplain, but when the chaplain’s wife became ill, he had to step down, said Joe Hunter, founder of Truckstop Ministries.

So Hunter contacted Rocky Trail, owner of Trails Travel Center, about the possibility of starting a Truckstop Ministries program there. The program uses local people to minister to truckers. Trail put a notice into the bulletin of his home church, Crossroads Evangelical Free Church, to help get the ministry going.

When member Chuck Avery saw the notice, it hit a chord. “I retired from UPS, and my father was an over-the-road trucker,” Avery said. “I know a lot about the people left at home.”

And he was looking for a ministry. “It is six miles from our house and there are no language barriers,” Avery said.

The truck stop will now have a service in its conference room each Sunday at 10 a.m. According to Hunter, the service consists of informal Bible study and praying with the people who attend according to their needs.

“You never know from one Sunday to the next what you’re going to have,” Hunter said of those attending services around the country. Truckstop Ministries Inc. is in its 28th year.

Hunter said he sees the need for the ministry now more than ever. “There’s a great deal of pressure on drivers because of the economy,” he said. “Companies want more out of their drivers. If it gives them peace to vent, we welcome that.”

Hunter said the 24-hour prayer line also welcomes truckers taking the opportunity to vent their problems. “If they talk about it, there’s a good chance they won’t take it out on another driver in the form of road rage,” he said.

Avery completed the chaplaincy program along with two others, and two more people are in the process of completing it. It’s Avery’s job to make sure there’s a chaplain on hand every Sunday, he said.

“We will keep it very informal,” he said of the service. “We’ll have a fellowship atmosphere with a lesson to share and see who shows up.”

Volunteers will get together each Sunday and put flyers on the trucks to let drivers know about the service. Their wives will be on hand at the entrance to the fuel desk to welcome people.

Hunter and Avery said they are grateful to Trail for taking the initiative to get the ministry started locally.

Truckstop Ministries operates on donations, Hunter said, but never passes the plate at services.

“We’re supported by people who have seen it and want to be a part of it,” Hunter said.

Anyone interested in getting involved in the ministry can contact Avery at 383-7449. For more information on Truckstop Ministries, go to www.truckstopministries.org.