Roger Davis may have been born to turn a wrench. After rebuilding a car engine with his father as a child, Davis spent nearly four decades improving his craft—and he’s not done learning yet. Davis was recently honored with the 2025 National Association of Fleet Administrators (NAFA) Fleet Technician of the Year Award, a competitive national award for excellence and innovation in fleet management. On July 21, Roanoke City Council publicly recognized Davis for this significant accomplishment.
Davis, an automotive a technician of 39 years, has worked for the City for the last nine years. He attended Nashville Auto Diesel College and holds ASE Master Automotive Technician certification, Master Medium/Heavy Duty Truck Technician certification, as well as 14 further certifications in maintaining emergency vehicles, like ambulances and fire trucks. What truly sets Davis apart is his drive to continue learning: he averages over 10 hours per month on an automotive technician training app called Today’s Class, answering thousands of questions with over 93% accuracy. He’s the top performer in the entire app nationwide.
“He is vital to our shop when it comes to hydraulics systems as well as electrical systems. His ability to diagnose ambulances and heavy-duty is top tier in our shop. As a mentor, we can count on him to train our younger technicians on day shift how to properly repair ambulances and heavy-duty equipment such as boom trucks and backhoes,” said Wayne C. Farley, Jr, Fleet Manager.
It takes a team of nearly 30 technicians to maintain the City of Roanoke’s vehicle fleet. The City of Roanoke Fleet Management team also earned a spot on NAFA’s list of top 100 Best Public Fleets, beating out many larger municipalities.
Davis represents the professionalism and dedication of Roanoke City employees, and the City is proud of his meaningful accomplishment.