The Missouri Public Transit Association, Iowa Public Transit Association, and Nebraska Association of Transportation Providers honored operators from across the Midwest at the 2025 Midwest Transit Conference Breakfast of Transit Champions, held on Friday, September 5, as a part of the 2025 Midwest Transit Conference and Expo held in Kansas City, MO this month. Operators were nominated by their respective agencies for going above and beyond the call of duty.
To view the Missouri operators who were nominated, view the list below and visit the 2025 Midwest Transit Operator Champions page for each operator’s story.
- Brandie Smith, Cape Girardeau County Transit Authority, Paratransit Operator
- Dwayne Bratcher, Cape Girardeau County Transit Authority, Demand Response Operator
- Taylor Miller, Jefferson Franklin Community Action Corporation, Transportation Coordinator
- Dora Howard, Kansas City Area Transportation Authority (KCATA), Badge #3
- Geralyn Pardo, OATS Transit – Labadie MO, Mideast Region
- Gerald “Jerry” Browning, OATS Transit – Nixa, MO, Southwest Region
- Mike Born, OATS Transit – Lee’s Summit, MO, Midwest Region
- Terry Burns, OATS Transit – Braymer, MO, Northwest Region
- Forrest Williams, OATS Transit – Camdenton, MO, Mid-MO Region
- Magdalena “Magda” Villareal Reed, OATS Transit – Calhoun, MO, Midwest Region
- Noe’ Flores, SMTS, Inc., Non-Emergency Medical Transportation
- Tony Tate, SMTS, Inc., Workshop Transportation
- Whitney Phillips, SMTS, Inc., Long-Distance Transportation
- JR Parker, SMTS, Inc., Paratransit (Local Service)
- Vernon Neel, SMTS, Inc., Deviated Fixed Route
- Charles Boone, Bi-State Development/Metro Transit, Bus Operator
- Takesha Standford, Bi-State Development/Metro Transit, Call-A-Ride Van Operator
- Eric Dixon, Bi-State Development/Metro Transit, MetroLink LRV Operator
- Mark Hoover, SERVE, Inc., Driver
- Ray Whitlock, City of Joplin, Transit 3 Driver
- Mike Costelow, KC Streetcar Authority