When my grandfather, Clancy Cornell, founded ABC Companies in 1972, he wasn’t thinking about legacy. He was thinking about people. He was thinking about showing up early, finding the root of a problem, and fixing it right the first time. He was focused on earning trust through consistency, not convenience. Those early days were marked by adopting a hands-on approach, answering calls at all hours, personally delivering parts to a stranded fleet, and building our reputation for reliability and respect. 

That mindset became the foundation of our family’s leadership style. My father, Ron, and my uncle, Dane, inherited those values and embraced growth with integrity. They built our business from a handful of service bays to a multi-state operation, guided by valuing relationships and earning trust. They expanded service centers, staffed technicians, and introduced innovations, but never compromised the promise my grandfather made: we will take care of you and your bus. 

Today, fifty years later, the Cornell legacy is not nostalgia. It’s a direction. It reminds us of why we are in business and the responsibility we carry within one of the most dynamic and demanding industries. In the current climate, we are operating in an era marked by data-driven fleets, environmental expectations, and regulatory complexities. But through it all, the essence of our work remains the same: it’s always been about people and trust and doing right by those we serve.

The Transportation Industry Then and Now 

The transportation industry of 1972 was fundamentally different from today. Mechanical grease and hammers dominated the workshop. Routes were planned with paper maps, and regulators checked by hand. Parts were ordered by phone, and service centers were measured more by mileage than the market. 

Today, things are more complex. Telematics generates reams of data on diagnostics, uptime, and driver behavior. Fleets run multiple fuel types: diesel, CNG, and electric. Emissions demands are shifting policy. Customer expectations and scheduling are more urgent than ever. Technicians must now be experienced in onboard software, electric systems, and green fuel. 

Still, despite all the evolution, the heart of transportation remains unchanged. It’s still about moving people. It’s still about reliability and safety. It’s still about the thousands of small decisions by technicians, managers, and drivers that determine whether passengers arrive on time. It’s within that truth that Cornell legacy lives on.

What Cornell Legacy Means in Practice 

For us, the Cornell legacy is not just a family story. It is an active guide for how we lead and how we make decisions with clarity, commitment, and customer focus. 

1. Service Over Sales 

Clancy believed success came from relationships, not transactions. This compelled us to ask one question before everything: What do our customers actually need? When we opened our service hub in Aurora, Colorado, it wasn’t about flashy expansion. It was in response to fleets in the Mountain West needing faster, closer service. Our teams work from that hub daily, ensuring parts and technicians arrive sooner, and solutions come faster. That kind of responsive service behavior is how legacy becomes leadership. 

2. Consistency Through Industry Change 

Modern fleets face tightening regulations, driver shortages, and real-time demands. Industry is moving faster than ever. But when you strip away the noise, success still rests on reliability, relationships, and knowing your partner is always going to show up with integrity. That steady, value-based approach has helped us earn trust year after year even as the industry around us evolve. 

3. Customer-Centered Innovation 

Innovation has to be practical. Telematics, diagnostics software, and digital platforms are useful only when they fix real issues. Uptime concerns, technician bottlenecks, and data silos are some examples of the problems operators encounter daily. Our answer is to develop practical tools and processes that work across systems and streamline decision-making. Innovation, when rooted in today’s challenges, becomes impactful leadership. 

This mindset is at the heart of our ongoing efforts to raise the bar for the entire industry. We believe in redefining the standard by solving what matters. 

4. Preparing for What’s Next 

The future of fleet operations demands more than short-term fixes. Fleets today face a complex mix of electrification, compliance demands, driver turnover, and rising expectations for uptime. ABC FleetForward™ is how we help operators meet those challenges: not reactively, but with structure and strategy. It’s more than a service program. It’s a commitment to keeping fleets moving with fewer surprises and greater control. For us, it also supports broader goals: expanding into new markets, and building stronger, more reliable partnerships with operators across the country. It’s how we help customers prepare not just for today’s roadblocks, but for the road ahead.

Looking Ahead with the Right Compass

Fifty years isn’t the finish line. It is a marker that tells us where we’ve been and how far we still must go. Every milestone invites reflection: 

• Are we still aligned with the values that built ABC? 

• Are we listening closely to our customers? 

• Are we preparing not just for today, but for tomorrow and beyond? 

• Are we earning trust with every interaction? 

If we cannot ever answer yes with confidence, we know what to do: recommit and recalibrate.

Carrying the Responsibility Forward 

I carry this legacy with humility. ABC is not just the product of three generations of my family. It’s shaped by thousands of customers, employees, and partners who have placed their trust in us. Each time a technician finishes a midnight repair, a parts manager expedites a hard-to-find component, or a customer thanks us for a solution that saved their day — this is the Cornell legacy in action. 

Your feedback helps us sharpen our focus. Your expectations remind us of our responsibility. And your trust is the reason we show up each day ready to lead with purpose, with empathy, and with the promise to always do the right thing.