Dan Lanham, Transportation Director for Audubon Area Community Services, was recently inducted into the Kentucky Public Transit Hall of Fame.
“I knew absolutely nothing about transportation when I came to GRITS. I’ve been fortunate and lucky that people involved in transit helped me along the way,” Lanham said.
The announcement came at the recent Kentucky Public Transit Association (KPTA) Convention which meets every two years. The honor was a total surprise to Lanham, who has been with the organization for more than 16 years.
Prior to coming to GRITS, Lanham spent 30 years working for his family business, Lanham Brothers General Contractors Inc. When the company had to change in response to the economy in 2005, Lanham began looking for a new position.
“The construction market went south. I had already done a lot of volunteer work so I was looking for something that helped people,” Lanham said.
With a full resume of volunteer work including coaching multiple sports along with involvement in Junior Achievement, Leadership Owensboro, and the Boulware Center, Lanham knew he wanted a role that would allow him to give back.
“My favorite part of the job is helping people,” he said. “I had always been involved in the community. That’s what makes me feel good about GRITS, helping people that really need help.”
Lanham said he’d like to stay right where he is for a few more years.
“I’ve got in 16.5 years and I’m shooting for 20,” Lanham said. “We recently finished building a maintenance facility downtown. We are hoping to build an addition to the parking garage, too.”
Since joining Audubon Area Community Services, Lanham said they have experienced much growth.
“Our budget used to be $3 million a year and now it’s $17 million a year,” he said. “We used to service seven counties and now we service 22 counties. Before COVID, when times were right, we provided 2,500 trips a day.”
Lanham said the people he works with have made an impact on his success. Finding colleagues that care about the organization and people’s lives is key.
“I think that you find good people — you find people that care about what they’re doing not just for the money but because it’s improving things for other people and you’ll be successful,” he said. “Surround yourself with good people.”
