"Finding Her Why" in Trucking

Tracy Rushing remembers the moment she was notified that she was selected as the 2024 Influential Woman of the Year by the Women In Trucking Association (WIT): “This recognition felt like an incredible moment of validation in a career that has been built on passion, perseverance, and the deep belief that trucking is not just my job—it’s my mission field.”

Redefining the Road magazine was able to spend some time with Rushing as she prepared to share HERstory on the main stage at the Accelerate! Conference & Expo last November in Dallas. Here are some of her experiences, perspectives, and advice she shared.

Redefining the Road: How did your career begin in the trucking industry?

Rushing: My trucking story started nearly 30 years ago with a job that didn’t seem all that special at the time. It definitely did not feel like the beginning of a career. At that time, women in this industry were often confined to roles like secretaries, assistants, and bookkeepers—in my case, a scale house operator and payroll assistant. My first fleet was a rendering fleet out of Forest, Miss., the U.S. poultry capital at the time. Little did I know that it wasn’t just a job, the drivers counted on me to get them off the scale and onto the road. I felt a sense of purpose. 

I spent the next several years working in every role between the scale house and human resources office. I continued to take courses and earn industry specific certifications in FMCSA and DOT compliance, safety, HR, accident investigation and even employment law. At that time, HR, recruiting, and fleet safety were one role in our company. So when the company was purchased, I had the experience and certifications to move into the safety & HR manager role for a sister company. More opportunities for me to learn. 

Redefining the Road: What is your current role and responsibilities at R.E. Garrison Trucking?

Rushing: I’m Executive Director of Safety and Recruiting at R.E. Garrison Trucking, an Alabama-based refrigerated fleet with more than 800 tractors. I am responsible for ensuring that our drivers are supported, safe, and set up for success every time they hit the road. I oversee the Operational Safety Support Team, driver and non-driver recruiters, the Orientation and Onboarding Team, our Driver Development programs, and our signature R.E. Garrison Crown Driver Program. This program, which is one of my proudest accomplishments, inspires drivers, promotes good driving habits, and enhances driver profitability. We launched the program in 2022, and today we have more than 150 Crown Drivers who have earned increased pay, awards, and recognition for their commitment to service excellence, roadway safety, and pride of ownership. The driver support teams assigned to these Crown Drivers also are recognized each year with a “Shell Award,” which recognizes seven critical characteristics of a Crown Driver. Terry The Truckin’ Turtle is our safety mascot, which creates fun around some very serious driver safety issues.

Redefining the Road: The trucking industry is filled with interesting and memorable personalities. Is there any one individual who stands out in your experience?

Rushing: I was working as the Safety & HR manager for a local refrigerated fleet when it was time for my sons to get their first jobs – and they found them at the company where I worked. They started after school and football practice in the oil change pit, learning how to change oil, push a shop broom, run a weed eater, and count inventory.

Through those after-school hours and summers they gained what I’ll call a “trucking grandparent.” Ms. Willie was a 75-year-old veteran over-the-road driver. Although she was teaching them about trucking, they really were learning about life. She taught lessons about how to “run on time,” the importance of keeping your word, and how to be mindful of how your actions affect others. Ms. Willie was the toughest trucker in the fleet. She did things the right way and she expected everyone around her to do things the right way as well. She took me on my first “chicken run” and what I learned on that trip and every one after is that women in trucking have the same equipment, the same lanes, the same picks and drops, and the same opportunity - but with a different set of challenges and obstacles to consider. She taught me that when I want something different, I have to do something different.

Redefining the Road: Did you have any other individual or mentor who had a significant influence on your career?

Rushing: Working alongside drivers has shaped my work ethic and taught me invaluable lessons about resilience, perseverance, and teamwork. I earned the title of “trucker”—a badge earned thanks to the unwavering commitment to not getting “out worked” or “out toughed.” My mentor, Marti Wall, taught me the importance of this commitment to one’s career. She would say: “My favorite thing about trucking is it ain’t rocket science. If you’re willing to work hard you can be wildly successful.”

Marti was one of the strongest women I have ever had the privilege of knowing. She earned her position with hard work and a “no quit” spirit. She was intentional, she knew her “why,” and relied on it to drive every decision she made. She instilled in her staff that determining your “why” is vital to your career and your mission to move America. She used her position and her influence to create opportunities for the rest of us (“her girls,” as she called us) to be successful at whatever that looked like for each of us.

Redefining the Road: Do you think it’s important to be involved in the industry if you take your career seriously?

Rushing: Yes! Outside of my role at R.E. Garrison, I’m deeply involved in the broader trucking industry. I am active or serve on several committees, including the Safety & Maintenance Management Council of the Alabama Trucking Association; the Risk Management Advisory Committee of the ATA Comp Fund; and the Women in Trucking Membership Committee. In 2023, I was proud to be honored as the Alabama Safety Director of the Year Runner-Up and to have earned my NATMI Certified Director of Safety certification and designation as a NATMI Instructor. Service to the industry and serving as a mentor are a heavy time-lift for each of  us, but time is our currency and those investments are always a good spend.

Redefining the Road: What motivates you in your career?

Rushing: My motivation comes from my faith, my family, and my trucking community. Early on when I was challenged to identify my “why,” I realized that my why had been born from hearing a story about a driver receiving Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior at our terminal in Mississippi and was telling a fellow driver about Jesus out on the road in California by the end of the week. From that story trucking became a mission field for me. For me it is the fastest way to share the gospel. Jesus is my “why.”

Related Articles: 

• 2023: Shelley Simpson (J.B. Hunt) Named Influential Woman In Trucking
• 2022: Trina Norman (UPS) Named Influential Woman In Trucking
• 2021: Lily Ley (PACCAR) Named Influential Woman In Trucking 
• 2020: Kristy Knichel (Knichel Logistics) & Jodi Teuton (Kenworth of Louisiana)
• 2019: Ruth Lopez (Ryder) Named Influential Woman In Trucking
• 2018: Angela Eliacostas (AGT Global Logistics) Named
• 2017: Daphne Jefferson (Deputy Administrator, US DOT)
• 2016: Ramona Hood (GENCO) Named Influential Woman In Trucking

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