Our Team

The Team that Keeps us Going

Our team has over 340 years of combined experience in the school bus industry. Experts in the yellow bus, meet the team that keeps your buses on the road.

Executive Staff
Clifford Zehr
President
Cliff has over 35 years experience in the school bus industry. He has served on the Indiana School Bus Safety Committee and the Dealer Advisory Council for Thomas Built Buses. Cliff's new favorite hobby is hanging out with his grandkids.
Melanie Zehr
Vice-President
Melanie has been around buses her entire life. Starting at Kerlin Bus Sales in 2005 was the next step to learning the business. Having spent time in most departments, you will still find her answering the IT questions while making sure everyone has what they need to do their job.
Kelly Moore
General Manager
Kelly joined the Kerlin Bus Sales team in 2016, but is not new to school bus transportation. He spent several years as a manufacturer's rep for IMMI in Westfield, IN. Kelly will continue to be one of the faces of sales while he transitions north.
Service Staff
John Rhoads
Service Manager
John has been with Kerlin Bus Sales for over 15 years. John often times works closely with engineers from Thomas and Freightliner to diagnose and correct issues. He has helped Thomas write 3 Product Support Bulletins for product improvements.
Carmen Evans
Service Coordinator
Carmen has been with Kerlin Bus Sales since 2008, and was previously with the State Highway Department as Parts Inventory Manager. Carmen works closely with our parts and service departments, keeping everything moving smoothly and organized. When she is not working you will find her sewing away.
Jason Farlow
Field Service Technician
Jason joined Kerlin Bus Sales in 2018 as a field service technician. Jason is based out of the Fort Wayne area. Jason has a long history in the transportation world and we are glad to have him on the Kerlin team.
Gene Noble
Field Service Technician
Gene joined Kerlin Bus Sales in 2017 as a field service technician. Gene is based out of his home in the Indianapolis area. Gene worked for a school corporation for several years before moving to Indy. Those in the south are most likely to see Gene for service work.
Rick Baldwin
Field Service Technician
Rick joined the Kerlin Team in 2019 and operates out of the Indianapolis area. You will often find Rick and Gene working together to keep your buses on the road. We are happy to have Rick with us.
James Bays
Field Service Technician
James joined Kerlin Bus Sales in 2022 as a field service technician. James is based out of the Bloomfield area. We are glad to have him on the Kerlin team.
Parts Staff
Thad Leininger
Parts Manager
Thad joined the Kerlin Bus Sales team in 2008 as a shipper & receiver for Richard Kerlin. Now our parts manager, Thad coordinates all aspects of the parts department. He works closely with our service team to ensure we have the parts you need.
Jay Smith
Lead Parts Analyst
Jay has been with Kerlin Bus Sales since 2003. He worked in the shop before moving to parts where he spent many years learning from Richard Kerlin. Jay also runs a northern Indiana parts route and helps train customers on parts look up.
Royce Wright
Account Manager
Royce joined the Kerlin team in 2011. A strong mechanical and parts background makes Royce an asset to all our customers. He is also our in house A/C expert. If you have something you think you can't find Royce will find it!
Gary Grimm
Parts Analyst
Gary joined the Kerlin Bus Sales Team in 2016. Gary brings many years of customer service to the parts team and has quickly mastered the parts look up process. Need to know about shoes, he is your guy too.
Wendy Simpson
Parts Clerk/Inventory
Wendy works to keep the parts department organized and streamlined with ordering and receiving. She is also a great resource for status of orders. She also helps maintain inventory levels.
Brad Tennant
Shipping & Receiving
Brad joined the Kerlin Parts team in 2018. He does a great job getting items to their destination and our account managers organized as they are out on the road.
Chuck Abel
Account Manager
Chuck joined us in 2019 as a remote Parts Analyst and Account Manager for Central Indiana. Chuck has a vast amount of industry knowledge and is very versed on all the Thomas/ Freightliner Part Systems. He is also leading our learning on the new Excelarator.
Sales Staff
Isidro Fernandez
Spanish Sales
Isidro is our export sales specialist. He is fluent in Spanish and is onsite most days and able to translate. Contact us if you would like his information to use whatsapp to communicate.
Roger Bradford
Sales Manager
Roger has been with Kerlin Bus Sales since 1998. An integral part of our sales team, Roger has built many strong relationships with KBS customers and Thomas Personnel. He is also our chassis specialist.
Christine Cripe
Sales Coordinator
Christine has been with Kerlin Bus Sales since 1995. She builds and orders all of our buses. Christine works closely with TBB testing new systems and processes. A wealth of knowledge on buses and options, Christine is one of our go to's for help on ordering.
Dave Dorsett
Regional Account Manager/EV
Dave joined the Kerlin Bus Sales team in 2017. He has worked in several different industries throughout his career and even driven as a bus driver. Dave lives in the Martinsville Area and has the southern portion of the state as his territory.
Jamie Hotchkiss
Regional Account Manager
Jamie joined the Kerlin Bus Sales team in 2022. Jamie lives in the Huntington Area and has the northern portion of the state as his territory.
Office Staff
Tracy Hobbs
Warranty Manager
Tracy has been with KBS since 2008 as our warranty administrator. She is in charge of filing all warranties with Freightliner and Thomas, and also helps collect needed paperwork for CPWAs and Service Centers.
Richard Harrold
Office Manager/AP
Richard has been with Kerlin Bus Sales since 2004. He oversees the office operation and is our internal accountant. Richard is one of our Accounts Payable contacts.
Kim Tennant
Receptionist/Title Clerk
Kim joined the Kerlin team early in 2021. She prepares all paperwork for new buses and can answer many questions about titles and paperwork needed for BMV. She also works closely with our sales team recording used bus information.
Marsha Arnett
Account Receivable
Marsha has been with Kerlin Bus Sales since 2011. She is responsible for accounts receivable collections. She maintains invoicing and statement information. Marsha also assists with receptionist duties as needed.
Ben Wagner
Human Resources/ AP
Ben has been on staff at Kerlin Bus Sales for many years. Starting in the detailing department and working to get his degree in HR. Ben is now our HR manager and AP clerk.