by Women In Trucking Staff, on Dec 2, 2024 5:00:00 AM
ARLINGTON, Va. – December 2, 2024 – The Women In Trucking Association (WIT) has announced April Crysel as its December 2024 Member of the Month. Crysel is a professional driver for Chestnut Enterprises, a well-established company in Wilmington, North Carolina that has been in the container repair industry since 1977. She is also a member of the WIT Class of 2024 Image Team.
At the age of 45, after her factory job was outsourced to another country, Crysel began her career in the industry at Maverick Transportation where she hauled specialized flatbed, hauling glass to 48 states and Canada. From there, she became a driver trainer/driver support team for Ryder System, Inc. In this role, she drove box truck, flatbed, doubles, refrigerated tanker, containers and dump beds. She then settled into working for an owner-operator hauling containers out of the ports. Additionally, Crysel tried her hand as a safety manager and dispatcher at Global Transportation Management (GTM) for two years, enjoying helping other drivers get started in their careers. She thoroughly enjoyed her time in the office but ultimately missed driving and the open road.
Now, 10 years later, Crysel is thrilled to be working with the most wonderful people at Chestnut Enterprises, a small family-owned company with a husband-and-wife team. She loves the people she works for as they are flexible in and out of the port and there is a great camaraderie. “Everyone gets along, and everybody helps everybody,” says Crysel. “You don’t see that as much nowadays and that’s why I don’t want to leave.”
Crysel discovered WIT when she came across the Facebook page in 2015. Shortly after, Sandy Long became her mentor, and she became part of the mentoring Facebook page. She is passionate about helping and supporting other women saying, “being able to help and connect with other women so they know they have a support system here for them is so fulfilling.”
One of Crysel’s favorite parts of being involved with WIT and on the Image Team is attending the Accelerate! Conference & Expo. She has made many lifelong friends throughout the years and enjoys watching women come together and empower each other.
Off the road, Crysel has boy and girl twins who are grown and have children of their own giving her three wonderful grandsugars.
###
About Women In Trucking Association, Inc.
Women In Trucking Association, Inc. is a nonprofit association established to encourage the employment of women in the trucking industry, promote their accomplishments and minimize obstacles faced by women working in the trucking industry. Membership is not limited to women, as 17 percent of its members are men who support the mission. Women In Trucking is supported by its members and the generosity of Gold Level Partners: Arrow Truck Sales, Bridgestone Americas, Daimler Truck North America, FedEx Freight, Great Dane, International Motors, J.B. Hunt Transport, Michelin North America, PACCAR, Penske Transportation Solutions, Ryder System, UPS, Walmart, and WM. Follow WIT on Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. For more information, visit www.womenintrucking.org or call 888-464-9482.
