LETS CELEBRATE AMERICA!

As the birthday of our nation approaches we should all take some time to reflect on how fortunate we are to be citizens of the United States of America and for all the freedoms we have.  We take so many freedoms for granted.  The freedom of speech, the right to vote, freedom of religion all these things that are so commonplace to us are unheard of rights in some countries. 

June 14^th was Flag Day – how many people observed that day?  There were some special celebrations in Washington D.C and in Philadelphia, Pa at Freedom Hall, but as a general rule the day came and went unobserved. 

How much do you know about our flag?  Here are some questions see if you know the answers.

When was the first flag authorized?  The flag was authorized by the Continental Congress on June 14, 1777. 

What do the stars and stripes represent? The alternating red and white stripes represent the first 13 states.  The white stars in a blue field represent “a new constellation”.  In 1818 Congress and President James Monroe agreed that there should be 1 star for each state added to the union.

What is a flag expert called?  A flag expert is called a vexillologist

For information on how to properly display the flag go to www.ushistory.org/betsy/flagetiq.html   

 So as July 4^th approaches take some time during the picnics, bar-b q’s and fireworks to think about the founding fathers and our Constitution which guarantees our freedoms.  Think about our flag and all it stands for, think about all those in past and current wars who are representing our freedom and defending all that our flag stands for.  Thank a veteran because freedom is not free.  Fly the flag proudly!  

Have a safe and happy 4^th from all of us at Dodge Moving & Storage.

 

THE BOYS OF SUMMER

When we hear the phrase “The Boys of Summer” we automatically think of baseball.  In fact, here in St. Louis almost everything makes us think of baseball.  From the beginning of February when the pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training to the end of the World Series in October – we St. Louisans are in a baseball frame of mind.

I was thinking the moving business is a lot like baseball.  We have our Boys of Summer too, our movers and drivers. Unlike baseball we do have ladies on our team but we have a Spring Training.  There are the new team members who report in May to be trained and the veterans who help do the training. There are work outs; proper lifting techniques and carrying heavy objects up and down stairs.  They do weight training with heavy boxes to learn to build tiers. They practice packing, padding and shrink wrapping.  They learn assembly and disassembly, how to build a crate and what goes in which kind of box.  They are taught how to deal with the customer, what they are being rated on in the survey and that they must wear the team uniform.  All this BEFORE they go on the job. 

Ball players make public appearances, sign autographs and answer questions.  Our Boys of Summer do that every day.  The go to the residence meet with the customer, explain the move process, answer their questions, calm their fears and get all the paperwork signed.  They are our best ambassadors.   

Just as the ball players have adoring fans – so do our Boys of Summer.  

 Bob Almo and crew:  “The best move I ever had, so courteous and helpful.”

 Jeremy Whys – “He was so kind and hard-working; I wish he was my son”.

Manny Boudonck – “You should clone Manny!”

Mark Henson – “Mark is the rock star of moving”

Ray Ramsey– “Ray our driver was wonderful, he took charge and made us feel very comfortable.”

Like baseball we are all a team and it takes a team to get the job done.  The salespeople, dispatchers, move coordinators, warehouse crews, billing specialists, and claims people, we all play a role on the team.  It takes all of us to make it through the season. We have a great team at Dodge.  But it is the “feet on the ground” The Boys of Summer who make our business run.  Without them there would be no business, without their hard work we would not be successful.

So if a move is in your future, call the Dodge Team whether you want to move across country, across town or just need to store some stuff.  Our team is ready to step up to the plate and make your move a home run!

So thank you Boys of Summer and GOOOOOO Cards.    

Happy Mother’s Day to All Mom’s

As Mother’s Day approaches our thoughts turn to thinking of our Mom.  Our Mom my not be our mom in the traditional sense.  Mom may be an aunt, a grandmother, a friend or neighbor who has cared for us and helped us through the trials of everyday living.  Mother’s Day is our day to say “thanks” and let our moms know how much we appreciate them. 

One of the “trials” of life is moving.  Psychologists tell us moving is one of the most stressful situations we encounter and unfortunately most of this stress falls on MOM.  She has to make the arrangements, decide on the movers and look for new schools.  Guess what Mom?  It doesn’t have to be stressful.  At Dodge Moving we can move you to your new home and make it stress free.  You just have to make one phone call.  Our experienced estimators will come to your home and give you a “straight talk” estimate.  No mover- speak just plain language you can understand.  Our experienced packers will pack all your belongings and one of our award winning drivers will move you to your new destination.  No need to worry about schools or church or your new neighborhood.   Our CityPointe service can give you information on your new city, ratings of the schools, locations of churches and lots of other information that will make you feel at home right away.

So sit back and relax Mom – celebrate yourself this Mother’s Day and leave the moving to Dodge Moving and Storage. 

Here are some thoughts others have had about their Mom:

The decision to have a child is momentous.  It is deciding to forever have your heart walk around outside your body.  …. Elizabeth Stone

A mother is a person who seeing there are only 4 pieces of pie for 5 people promptly announces she never did care for pie.  ….. Tenneva Jordon

Mother is the name for God in the lips and hearts of little children. .. William Thackery

All that I am and ever hope to be I owe to my angel mother. …Abraham Lincoln

Being a mother is one of the highest salaried jobs since the payment is love. .. Mildred Vermont.

I want my children to have all the things I could never afford.  Then I will go live with them. ….Phyllis Diller

      

Signs of Spring

The calendar says it is SPRING!  So it must be Spring – never mind that you still have on your winter coat and there is snow flying in the air.  Maybe Spring this year is just a state of “mind” – and it hasn’t hit our state yet.   The kids know it is spring.  Kids are at the bus stop with soccer balls and baseball bats.  Their attire is winter coats over shorts and sandals!  Kids are flexible they are ready for whatever the weather.

The birds are back from their wintering grounds, great flocks gathering at bird feeders, ponds and lakes.  The birds know it is spring.

The early spring flowers are popping up, purple hyacinth, crocus, sunny yellow daffodils. 

The time changes we Spring-up an hour and we all go around groggy for a week or two until our body clock adjusts.  

With all the signs of spring maybe you need some where to store that winter stuff; winter clothes, sleds, boots and snow shovels.  If you are SO done with winter and want to get all that stuff out of your sight call us.  We can drop a container on your driveway, you can load it up and we will come get it and store it until you are ready for it next winter.

Are you a “snowbird”?  Have you spent the winter in FL, Az. TX, or any other place that is warm and sunny?  Are you ready to come home now that the worst of winter is past?  The thought of driving your car all the way home makes you tired just to think of it?  Call us we can give you a competitive door to door rate to move your car for you.

The old adage says “April showers bring May flowers” that is true.  If the time has come for you to move either across town or across the country call us.  We will bring you a Mayflower truck, complete with a friendly driver to handle your relocation.  

So call us at Dodge Moving and Storage either in Earth City, MO or O’Fallon, IL. our friendly staff is ready to spring into action to help with all your moving needs!

Moving an elderly loved one doesn't have to be stressful...

Moving a loved one to an assisted living facility is one of the hardest decisions you’ll have to make in life. Not only are they moving to a strange new place – they are also seeing their home that they built through life disappear. All of the memories they’ve created in that home will be just that, a memory.  We know this is an extremely difficult time for the person or couple moving in to the assisted living, but also stressful on the friends or family arranging the move.  Dodge Moving & Storage prides ourselves on being the premier senior living mover in St. Louis.  We promise to make your move stress free.   We have trained Senior Living movers, who do just that and only that.   Not only are we the best, we’re also extremely competitive on with our rates.

Know Your New Neighborhood.

Wouldn’t it be nice when you are moving if you could know about your new neighborhood in advance?  Well you can!  Just log on to www.mayflower.com and click on CityPointe.  You can get reports on all the schools in your new area,  you can locate a church near you, read a city profile,  you can even do a comparison report of your current city to the new city.  Maybe you won’t be purchasing a house right away and need temporary housing – guess what? CityPointe can help with that too! Having all this information up front certainly reduces the stress level by removing some of the “unknowns” in your new area.  Knowing your new neighborhood in advance can make you feel comfortable much sooner.  

Aside from the handy destination information, CityPointe offers all kinds of other services such as helping you find a realtor to sell your current home and/or find a new one at destination.  There are ways to even get cash back on your move – wow that is like having your cake and eating it too!  

Want to know more about CityPoint?  Give us a call at Dodge Mayflower we will have one of our team members speak with you or send you some information.  If you want to look on your own just check out http://ow.ly/uFkxa.  Either way it’s a win-win for you.

Roadmap to Success

Several members of the Dodge Moving & Storage Team attended the 2014 Unigroup Learning Conference at the Renaissance Hotel in St. Louis.  A large menu of topics were offered for the agency members of both United Van Lines and Mayflower Transit from all over the world.  There were topics of interest for all aspects of the business such as Minding Your Market for the sales team, Making Customer Service Personal for the customer service area, to the IT personnel who could attend Soaring Into the Cloud with Microsoft 365.

One topic of specific interest was the new technology for FastTrack.  FastTrack is an inventory program that works with smart phones and IPads to quickly and carefully allow the driver to inventory a customer’s items that are to be loaded on move day.  The new technology release has been expanded to include packing items.  The FastTrack inventories are clear and easy to read and can be emailed to the customer or printed out.  It removes the issues of trying to read hand-written inventories and allows the customer to e-sign.

This new technology coupled with the on-line Quotes-To-Go estimating tool gives our customers the fastest most accurate way to receive a move quote. Dodge Moving and Storage sales and customer service teams are ready to help you with any aspect of moving.  Give us a call on both sides of the river – Dodge Earth City –or Dodge OFallon.