Wheeler Lumber hosts South Dakota congressional staff for tour, rail discussion

Written by Kyra Senese, Managing Editor
image description
Left to right: Dave Koch, Jeff Marlette, Sandy Marlette, Jeff Parrett, Mark Haugen and Lindsey Collins at Wheeler Lumber.
NRC

Wheeler Lumber, a National Railroad Construction & Maintenance Association (NRC) member, received a visit from the staff of U.S. Congresswoman Kristi Noem (R-S.D.) and U.S. Sen. John Thune (R-S.D.) and Sen. Mike Rounds (R-S.D.) for a tour of the company’s Whitewood, South Dakota, facility Sept. 8.

 

Jeff Parrett, vice president of Wheeler Lumber, presented an overview of the company and its current operations. The company employs 24 staff members at the Whitewood location and works with both public and private infrastructures, officials say.

“Since 1982, Wheeler has produced solutions for a variety of construction segments, including the rail construction and maintenance industry,” representatives said.

Parrett and Sales Manager Dave Koch led the tour, which included viewing the treating plant that the company had rebuilt in the wake of a fire in 2004 that destroyed the original plant.

Sen. Thune serves the 114th Congress on the Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry Committee and the Finance Committee and is the Chairman of the Commerce, Science, and Transportation Committee. He also serves as the Chairman of the Senate Republican Conference, the no. 3 position in Senate Republican Leadership.

Sen. Rounds participates in four committees: Senate Armed Services; Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs; Veterans’ Affairs; and Environment and Public Works. He previously served as South Dakota’s governor from 2003–2011 and as a state senator prior to that.

Congresswoman Noem is currently a member of the House Ways and Means Committee. She previously served as the 6th District Rep. to the South Dakota House of Representatives.

Attendees included:

  • Mr. Jeff Parrett, vice president, Wheeler Lumber
  • Mr. Dave Koch, sales manager, Wheeler Lumber
  • Mr. Jeff Marlette, BG, U.S. Army (Ret.), West River Regional Director, Sen. Mike Rounds
  • Mr. Mark Haugen, field representative, Sen. John Thune
  • Ms. Sandy Marlette, constituent services representative, Rep. Kristi Noem
  • Ms. Lindsey Collins, VP of Grassroots Advocacy at NRC
Tags: