This story first appeared in the FedEx Delivering for Good Report.

Air Force veteran, and FedEx Express crewmember Bob Bledsoe has been called a legend by fellow volunteers. That’s partly because he’s been serving with Team Rubicon almost as far back as its founding, but mostly because of his leadership.

Team Rubicon is a nonprofit that pairs the skills and experiences of military veterans with first responders and civilian volunteers to serve communities before, during, and after disasters and humanitarian crises. FedEx has supported Team Rubicon for five years.

Bob is the Volunteer Field Operations Lead for Team Rubicon’s North Branch. “I love mentoring newer volunteers, and I learn something new from them every day,” Bob says.

In 2010, his daughter was working in Haiti when the devastating earthquake struck. While coordinating medevacs, she happened to meet Team Rubicon’s first strike team led by Jake Wood, the organization’s co-founder and Executive Chairman. Soon after, she became a volunteer and her father followed her lead.

Bob first deployed with the organization in 2013 after a monstrous tornado carved a destructive path through Moore, Oklahoma. Being originally from the area, he was compelled to serve. “It felt personal,” he said. Since then, he’s been on too many operations to name, but the list includes a response in Houston after Hurricane Harvey in 2017, and more recently, serving to help with COVID-19 relief efforts.

A legend indeed, Bob exemplifies the FedEx Purple Promise: I will make every FedEx experience outstanding. Team members like Bob extend the Purple Promise not only to customers, but to fellow volunteers and communities as well.

FedEx

FedEx

FedEx Corp. (NYSE: FDX) provides customers and businesses worldwide with a broad portfolio of transportation, e-commerce, and business services. With annual revenue of $88 billion, the company offers integrated business solutions utilizing its flexible, efficient, and intelligent global network. Consistently ranked among the world's most admired and trusted employers, FedEx inspires its more than 500,000 employees to remain focused on safety, the highest ethical and professional standards, and the needs of their customers and communities. FedEx is committed to connecting people and possibilities around the world responsibly and resourcefully, with a goal to achieve carbon-neutral operations by 2040. To learn more, please visit fedex.com/about. 

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