Since I was younger, I always wanted to drive what I called the ‘big trucks’, but life had its own plans for me. Observing society norms, I thought women were not meant to be commercial truck drivers and driving trucks was meant to be a ‘man’s’ job. I grew up watching my mom, who had been a truck driver for twenty-six years, always being frowned upon because of the career she chose. With her being a single mother of three, I thought I was making a better choice by choosing to go to school and get a degree instead of taking on a trade. I learned quickly, after spending thousands of dollars on traditional school tuition and expenses, that my degree would not earn me the money that I hoped it would. I spent so much time working in fields that were not fulfilling to me nor my destiny. I could just say that I had a job and I could pay my bills. In 2019, my health took a turn for the worst and in that year, I knew that if I were to get through those battles that something about my life had to change. I also knew that I would not spend any more time working dead end jobs. Over the last four years, I was even more drawn to driving trucks so I decided that I wanted to go for it after all. Once my health was good, I started my research hoping to find a fast-paced CDL program and that is when I learned about Truck Driving Institute (TDI). Once I called TDI, I quickly found out that I would not have the funds to pay for the program. TDI offered a couple of options for me that would help me finance the program and, in that time, they mentioned the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA). After asking me a couple of question, they then explained to me how the program works and sent a referral on my behalf to the Middle Georgia Consortium, Inc. (MGCI). After I got approved by WIOA for funding to take care of my training costs, I was in class learning how to do the very thing that I had loved all my life. My Career Facilitator from WIOA checked on my weekly progress and made sure I also received transportation support to help with the cost of gas to attend training. I’m a single mother, so a childcare allowance was granted to me as well. The program at TDI was fast paced, but I must say I got everything I needed in those three weeks and the staff at TDI and WIOA were nothing shy of amazing. I am now finished with my program and I have endless job opportunities. I will soon be leaving to start my new career as a commercial truck driver with a great company thanks to TDI and MGCI working hand and hand.
