ESCANABA — Hunter Flower recently graduated from Midwest Truck Driving School in Escanaba with his Class A CDL. This is extraordinary because he is the first fully hearing impaired individual in the U.P. and only the second in the State of Michigan who received their Class A CDL.

For hearing impaired individuals, it is extremely difficult to obtain a CDL as one needs a federal waiver and exemption from the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration. After nearly two years of jumping through hoops and arduous tasks required by the State, Hunter received the federal exemption to get a CDL.

This was where the real difficulty began as administration at Midwest Truck Driving School in Escanaba coordinated how Hunter was going to be trained. The task was given to Midwest Truck Driving School’s Head Instructor, Mac Mcknight who has been a CDL Instructor for 22 years at Midwest. He used a remote control lighted beacon when doing yard maneuvers, and cue cards and a dry erase board on the road, and Hunter picked it up over Midwest’s month long Class A CDL course.

After completing the course, he then successfully passed the final State exam obtaining his CDL and has recently accepted a job offer at Oberstar Excavating in Marquette.

Midwest Truck Driving School couldn’t be prouder of Hunter for being the first fully hearing impaired CDL driver in the Upper Peninsula and only the second in the State of Michigan, and we wish him the best of luck.