Former Thomas Built Leader to Head Virginia School Bus Dealership

Caley Edgerly, the former president and CEO of Thomas Built Buses (TBB), will be taking on a new leadership role with Virginia-based school bus dealer Sonny Merryman.

On Thursday, Sonny Merryman announced that Edgerly will become its new president and CEO on August 9, according to a news release from the dealership.

Prior to accepting this position, Edgerly served the last six years as president and CEO of TBB, and more recently as general manager, operations planning and quality at Daimler Trucks North America (DTNA), TBB’s parent company. Under his leadership, TBB engineered and debuted its Jouley electric school bus, which Sonny Merryman has helped distribute across Virginia as part of Dominion Energy’s Electric School Bus Initiative.

With Edgerly joining the team, Sonny Merryman’s current president and CEO, Floyd Merryman, will step into a new role as the dealer’s executive chairman.

“Our team here at Sonny Merryman has been leading the electric school bus revolution — not only in Virginia but across the country as well,” Merryman said in the news release. “Caley’s wealth of experience and expertise will be a key asset to continuing our company’s growth in the electric bus industry.”

When asked about what he is most excited about, Edgerly said in the release that it is the people — the company’s customers and his new team.

“I’ve known Floyd and the Sonny Merryman team for nearly 10 years. From first meeting him and getting to know the dealership, I learned that not only are they some of the most knowledgeable and skilled in the industry, but above all else, their customers are their priority,” Edgerly said. “I’m thrilled and honored to be part of a team with those core principles.”

Edgerly’s experience at Daimler stretches beyond his roles at TBB. Edgerly first joined Detroit Diesel Corp. (DDC) in 1994 as a quality control engineer and later moved through the ranks of DDC and DTNA in numerous roles, including general manager and vice president.

In addition to appointing Edgerly as its new president and CEO, Sonny Merryman recently added its first non-employee member to its board of directors — John Dooley, the former CEO of the Virginia Tech Foundation.