CONTENT SPONSORED BY NFI INDUSTRIES
The phrase “sisterhood is powerful” may seem like an overused and outdated mantra, but it is the perfect description for the group of women involved in with SheDrives. Created by NFI Industries in partnership with Women In Trucking, the SheDrives community is thriving.
As we celebrate Mother’s Day this month, the sisterhood salutes the many women drivers who are balancing both motherhood and a career in trucking.
SheDrives members Jennifer Nunez and Sierra Taylor have a common bond: Each has experienced the ups and downs of working as a truck driver while pregnant. Both say they are grateful for the support and love they’ve found among other women truckers.
“I love the interaction between these women in SheDrives,” said Nunez. “Few women get into the trucking industry. Being able to talk with women doing exactly what I do — it’s amazing.”
Nunez was inspired to begin working trucking after meeting a woman who was working as a professional trucker. Nunez has now been driving now for over three years, and both she and her husband drive for NFI.
For Nunez, the SheDrives community is a valuable resource for women in trucking. She loves being able to discuss shared experiences and get advice from other women drivers, adding that receiving support and love from fellow drivers helped her remain on the road through most of her pregnancy.
“It was a little challenging to drive those last couple of months,” she said. “I drove until I was seven and a half months. I love what I do for a living, so it was hard to get off my truck.”
Nunez said overnight runs were the most difficult during her pregnancy.
“The other hard thing was getting in and out of the truck, but I made it happen,” Nunez said. “That’s what women do. We make it happen.”
Today, she says, she would love to bring her son, who is now 11 and a half months, out on the road with her if it were practical. Nunez also has a 22-year-old daughter.
Her advice to other pregnant drivers is simple and to the point: Take it easy when you can.
“You have to protect the little one inside you AND yourself,” Nunez said. “Safety at all times.”
Like Nunez, Taylor values the community she’s discovered through SheDrives.
“I love the connections I have made here. SheDrives is like a sisterhood,” said Taylor, who has driven for NFI for six years.
“Outside of being a woman and a driver in a male-dominated environment, SheDrives feels so good — being able to reach out to someone who understands driving as a mother,” she continued. “I can reach out, and they’re not going to look at me like I’m crazy. They’re going to encourage me and tell me things are going to be OK.”
While SheDrives had not yet been launched when Taylor was pregnant during the COVID-19 pandemic, she is happy to be able to offer a helping hand or encouraging word to other women.
“I was pregnant during the pandemic, and we were working emergency hours,” said Taylor, who continued to drive through her seventh month of pregnancy. She says her co-workers didn’t realize she was expecting until she hit a bump in the road — literally.
“I hit a bump, and the camera went off — and my belly was showing,” she shared. “When I came back to the office, they were all like, ‘Congratulations!’ The support from NFI was amazing. They made sure I had everything I needed.”
Taylor is pleased that the SheDrives community exists now, providing much-needed love and support for women drivers as they navigate their driving careers and life experiences.
After giving birth, she experienced postpartum depression. Thankfully, she says, she received support and care from her co-workers. Even so, she wishes the SheDrives community had been in operation at that time. She believes the forum would provide a safe, open place to talk and share experiences like this — and help other women navigate those darker days.
“NFI was so helpful giving me the extra time off that I needed,” Taylor said. “They were the best.”
Both Nunez and Taylor encourage women to consider joining the trucking industry.
“I would tell them to go for it,” Taylor said. “The support that’s out there now that we have so many more female drivers is insane. I would just say go for it.”
Nunez hopes to make a family business out of driving. Both she and her husband drive for NFI, and her 22-year-old daughter is now considering a career as a trucker.
“She told me, ‘Mom, I think I want to be part of this,’” Nunez said. “I told her to go for it. I hope someday my son will too.”
To hear more from Nunez and Taylor, watch the video below. For more information, check out NFI’s SheDrives community on YouTube.
Dana Guthrie is an award-winning journalist who has been featured in multiple newspapers, books and magazines across the globe. She is currently based in the Atlanta, Georgia, area.
Credit: Source link
