On April 11, 2009 at 8:15 a.m. Oregon State Police Senior Trooper Thad Routson and Recruit Trooper Matt Zistel stopped a commercial truck for a speed violation eastbound on Interstate 84 about seven miles east of The Dalles. The two troopers, who are based out of The Dalles Area Command office, completed a commercial truck inspection and warned the driver for speeding. The driver then told them that he had five boxes of pork loin that he needed to dispose of before picking up his next load. The boxes contained meat that had been damaged during unloading and the company he was delivering to refused to take the product.
Senior Trooper Routson contacted Windy River Gleaners in The Dalles to determine if there was a local need for the meat. The owner of Larry Beckett Trucking out of Wiley, Colorado was also contacted and gave his permission to donate the meat to a local food bank.
A driver from Windy River Gleaners responded to the location and took possession of the product. According to Marion Shrader of Windy River Gleaners, the 450 pounds of pork loin has already been packaged for disbursement to local needy families.
