There is one thing all lifelong friends and relatives of John Pitta will agree to about him – from the time he was a small child he loved trucks – any kind of truck, and it was something he never outgrew.

John was the third child born to Manuel and Mary Pitta in Monterey. Manuel had immigrated to the United States via Ellis Island from the Portuguese island of Madeira. After working his way to the west coast, Manuel eventually was able to purchase his own fishing boat, a 36 foot Monterey Clipper named “Happy Toiler.” Manuel would fish the waters of the Pacific alone as far south as Mexico and north to Oregon, and in those days there was little ship-to-shore communications and definitely no Coast Guard with long range helicopters.

On September 11, 1951 Manuel left for a day of fishing for albacore off the coast of Monterey. When he didn’t return that evening as planned, the family knew something was wrong. The next afternoon the Sheriff came to the Pitta home to notify them that Manuel’s boat had been found eighty miles offshore and that Manuel was missing and presumed drowned. His body was never recovered.

Mary was left as the sole provider for her young family and within days of Manuel’s disappearance she had secured employment as a housekeeper. While in high school, John joined the Navy Reserve. Five months after graduating from high school, at age seventeen, he began two years of service in the U.S. Navy. After completing his naval tour, John entered Sacramento State University. Utilizing the G.I. Bill to help pay the bills along with working 40 hours a week (full-time), John graduated in 1970 with a B.S. degree in business administration. John recalled, “My mother (Mary) had instilled in each of us (including a brother and a sister) the need for pursuing higher education, and we didn’t want to let her down.” All three eventually graduated from college.

With his military service, college, and world travels behind him, John took a job in management with a trucking company, but wasn’t happy because what he really wanted to do was drive a truck. He soon left this job to follow his dream of driving. His first truck driving job was for a tanker line which also hauled hazardous waste throughout the Bay area. When the company eventually closed down, he decided to return to Monterey. It was 1983.

Back in Monterey, John looked around for truck driving jobs and found an opportunity as a dump truck driver for a local backhoe company driving a 1975 GMC ten-wheeler. In 1989, after six years working for this company, he decided to take a big step and purchased his own rig, a 1981 Pete transfer, but with new Wesco boxes and began subhauling for area brokers. One of the first brokers he worked under was Ray Dulany, CDTOA’s first Northern California Representative. “Ray let me know right away that if I planned to really be successful in the construction trucking business I should join CDTOA,” recalled John. He took Ray’s advice and soon joined CDTOA.

Over the next ten years, John worked steadily in the business and in 1999 he purchased his first new truck, a Pete, and pulled transfer boxes for a local quarry. John replaced his original 1981 transfer in 2002 with another Pete with Wesco’s, which he drives today. The 2000 transfer is operated by an employee driver. John has built his business by servicing his own accounts. “It’s all about service in this industry,” noted John.

Like many that understand the value of CDTOA membership, John became a Director for the Monterey Chapter and started attending board meetings regularly. John ultimately ran for and was elected to two terms as State Treasurer. John is presently the Chapter Chairman for Monterey Bay.

John will be the first to tell you the value of a trade association and how valuable he considers the knowledge he has gained from being a member of CDTOA. In addition, he has also saved or gained financially by participating in the many programs offered by CDTOA, such as C-DATA and CDTOA’s group workers’ compensation program. John’s philosophy concerning his membership in CDTOA is, “that every industry has an association that represent those members who operate within that industry – it’s important to support an association that’s working to improve the industry where one makes a living”.

He and his wife Leath are the proud parents of two children, daughter Maren is now working towards earning her teaching credential at Chapman University while also working as a teacher’s aide. Their son Colin is a student at Oklahoma State University, Okmulgee Campus, where he is majoring in computer security. Colin is a former recipient of a CDTOA Scholarship Award.

So, from humble beginnings and family tragedy, John has accomplished what many will never achieve. He is living his life exactly as he wanted, driving his truck in one of the most beautiful places in the world, many days up and down Highway 1 with the Pacific Ocean in his sights. John is truly the “Happy Toiler”.

(Rev 2/07)