Dwain Hebda

In three decades on the road, Bill McNamee has piled up enough adventures to fill several volumes — but he hasn’t done it alone. For the past 27 years he’s brought along a “menagerie” of companions including mice, a lizard, a hedgehog, a duck and the occasional bulldog, all of whom have come along for the ride. Along the way, his “mascots,” as he calls them have accumulated their own share of experiences and gotten into the occasional mischief, notwithstanding the fact that each is stuffed. “I started out with a mouse called Seatbelt Sam in ’99. I saw this mouse at Cracker Barrel and I thought, ‘You know, this would be a good mascot,’” he said. “I got another mouse; that was Mario, Mario Provolone. And then, I found this girl mouse and I named her Cheddar Mouse. “Cheddar married Seatbelt Sam,” McNamee continued his story. “Two years later, we went out and got three little mice — three little catnip toys — named Colby and Pepper and Jack. So, they had three kids.” Told out of context, this backstory about McNamee’s collection of stuffed animals with elaborate backstories might suggest a guy who’s been out on the road just a little bit too long. In fact, however, his furry pals are all part of McNamee’s strategy for engaging schoolchildren through the Trucker Buddy Program, and it’s an effective strategy. “The concept of that program is to show kids what we have in our beautiful country. It’s also to show the necessity of the trucking industry in everybody’s life,” he said. “We promote a positive image and show them that (truckers are) normal people, just like their moms and dads. We just don’t get to come home every day.” McNamee said he is also able to share lessons about seatbelt safety and distracted driving that children can share with their parents. “We throw in anti-bullying messages, sharing the road messages, how to be good friends to their classmates. We’re doing all of that and making it all fun,” he said. McNamee, who drives for Carbon Express, has been assigned to various classrooms during his time in the Trucker Buddy program. Currently he’s currently assigned to three classrooms of Christopher Elementary second-graders in Christopher, Illinois. That’s 62 kids in all. While on the road, he’ll drop the classes a postcard or send a photo of the mascots; while at home, he’ll pay the students an in-person visit. “You know, a lot of kids never leave their hometown. Some kids never go coast to coast. They’ll never see the Rocky Mountains; never see New York City. So, we share that with them and while we’re doing that, we teach them about how important the trucking industry is,” he said. “This thing just grows and grows. It seems like every couple of months, I can think of a new lesson for them about something,” he continued. In fact, the stories have become elaborate enough to qualify as their own daytime dramas. McNamee staged a wedding for Seatbelt Sam and Cheddar after a student suggested it wasn’t proper for unmarried male and female mice to travel together. In another caper, he caught the mascots ordering pizza using McNamee’s credit card without permission. In their latest stunt, the mascots went for a joyride on McNamee’s riding lawn mower, only to be caught and sentenced to “house arrest,” complete with ankle monitors. He’s working with local authorities to “pardon” them, allowing them to go on the next run. McNamee’s mascot collection has grown right along with the storylines. In addition to the mice, the crew now includes Henry the Highway Hedgehog, Larry the Lizard and a duck, named simply, Duck in the Truck. “He used to be small duck, about 6 inches tall,” McNamee said. “But, last year, he got stung by a bee because I found this really big duck. So, I made the storyline, and I got my first responder medical bag out and I put the mascots all around him and I took pictures of them. They had a stethoscope, and they were checking him out. “He never recovered from the bee sting, so he is now really big in the truck because he got all swollen up. He’s the big guy in the truck,” McNamee continued the tale. “We just call him Duck in the Truck. We got him a T-shirt made and we’re starting to work on a fan club.” McNamee is aided in his Trucker Buddy stories by his wife Carrie, a fellow commercial driver who used to team with him on the road and now drives a bus. He said chronicling the tales of his ragtag crew not only keeps him mentally occupied on the road, but it also fulfills something his mother always preached when he was young. “Mom always said, ‘Don’t be a taker; be a giver,’” he said. “I’ve always been an over-the-road driver and I didn’t have a way that I could give back at home. I couldn’t be a coach or Cub Scout leader because I was never home. I was searching for something to do with my time that would educate young people and also help improve the image of the trucking industry. I wanted to put something good out there, so that when I told people that I was a truck driver, I could be proud of that.” Check out McNamee and his mischievous mascots on his Facebook group page, Trucker Buddies North & South, at facebook.com/groups/293354981039913.

Six years ago, when Dorin Kauhi opened a new chapter of her life as a truck driver, it caught the attention of her sister, DeeAnn Kauhi-Borgner. “(Driving a truck has) always been my dream, ever since I was 16 years old,” DeeAnn said. “We went to New Mexico with Mom and Dad on vacation. I used to watch all the 18-wheelers roll down the highway at night and it was so beautiful to me. I was like, ‘I’m going to be a truck driver. That’s what I want to be.’ “My husband passed away in 2018, and that’s when I finally decided to live out my dream, which, my little sister was already living my dream,” she continued. “So, I just decided I was going to follow in (Dorin’s) footprints. So that’s what I did.” Dorin didn’t get necessarily get into the business to inspire anyone — her primary motivation to be a driver was financial. But once her older sister started the process, she was more than happy to encourage her. “I was working at a Walmart at the time unloading trucks, doing about 18,000 steps a day,” Dorin said. “I’d see the truck drivers coming to do their load and I started asking them a lot of questions. I just decided six years ago. ‘I’m going to do this.’ So, I did. I was 49 years old when I got my license. “(DeeAnn) completely followed my footsteps. I went to C.R. England; then she went to C.R. England. Then I was able to get her into FedEx with me and we’ve been together ever since then, almost a year now.” The California-based duo has a dedicated run from City of Industry, California, to Amarillo, Texas. One week they’ll drive about 4,800 miles and the next week, about 6,800 miles. The sisters said that, in a male-dominated industry like trucking, theirs is a relationship that goes beyond just being sisters to being trusted fellow professionals. “We were raised like twins, but we’re so opposite. We’re totally opposites. (Dorin’s) very personable, talks to everyone, dresses really girly, has the gift of gab and gets really mad really fast. She has no patience. I am the exact opposite; I can wait in a line for days,” DeeAnn said. “But I know Dorin, so, the trust is 100%. I sleep like a rock on the truck because I trust my driver. I know that she’s not going to put me in a dangerous situation, and she is just as excited and just as anxious to get home to her kids and my kids,” DeeAnn said. “It makes the driving so comfortable. It’s better than husband and wife.” Of course, the sisters run into their fair share of catcalls and innuendo, but both noted that the way a woman carries herself and how well she does her job has a direct impact on the number of rude comments she has to listen to. “Because we’ve been raised the way we were raised, I was a fighter my whole life. I’m not afraid of no man. We’re not intimidated by men. And it’s not hard for us to make it in a man’s world. The majority of truck driving is still basically a man’s world, but we’re just fine,” DeeAnn said. “And it’s becoming more of a woman’s world all the time. There’s a lot more women than there’s ever been,” Dorin added. “I think women are better drivers. We’re more polite. We don’t cut each other off. You get some real jerks out there on the road, but I think women are just more patient and more courteous.” The biggest thing that’s taken fear out of the sisters’ hearts is the knowledge that they have stared down much scarier demons than anything they’ve seen in trucking. “We were deep in addiction for over 20 years and we were in that together, too. It went from alcohol and pot to meth. That’s what I was into. Raised our kids in addiction and none of them are addicted today. None of them took our path. Now we’re clean and we love being clean,” DeeAnn explained. “When I was an addict, I was a ‘good’ addict,” Dorin said. “Doing this, we keep each other accountable on a daily basis, absolutely. That’s how it is for me.” With that chapter of their lives behind them, the two FedEx drivers have turned their attention to the future and the dream of one day owning their own company. They have confidence in that dream, leaning on each other and their faith to make it happen. “We want to get our own truck and name it Two Girls, One Truck,” DeeAnn quipped. “Our goal in the next five years is to be owner-operators, both of us have our own truck, drive it for two years and then the third, fourth, fifth year of owning these trucks, we can get some young pups on the truck.” Dorin said that once she “got clean,” she started setting goals. “I’ve reached every single one of them,” Dorin said. “I rededicated myself to God recently and I was just like, ‘You know what you want me to do. I need to know what I need to do.’ None of this happens without God.”

On a recent stopover in New Mexico, longtime driver Frank Wehmeyer was walking out of a store with a bag of groceries when another driver approached him. “Hey, we’ve never met,” said the stranger with a big grin. “I know your dogs, though.” The genial Wehmeyer laughed and moved along. This wasn’t the first time the trucker with 20-plus years behind the wheel played second fiddle to his pooches in popularity. For 12 years, he readily admits, his furry companion Lucy was much more famous than he was. “One time back with Lucy, we were at a rest area. I was towards the end of the rest area where the good green grass was. A truck was leaving, and a lady stuck her head out the window screaming, ‘There’s Lucy!’” he said. “She’d seen her on (the) Trucking Fur Babies (Facebook page). I love that site. I like taking pictures anyway, and taking pictures of my dogs is fun.” Wehmeyer’s habit of taking pets on the road started almost accidentally. He and his then-wife were both going to be out of town, and she suggested he take her dog, J.J., along instead of boarding it. “We took a short trip to Chicago and back, and I really liked it — and I thought, ‘I want J.J. to go more often.’ She goes, ‘No, you’re going to have to get your own,’” he recalled. “So, I went and bought my first Corgi, Lucy, and she rode with me for the better part of 12 years.” Lucy’s tenure was overlapped by Bear, a Pekingese-dachshund mix who spent the first five years of life at home. When Wehmeyer finally brought him along for the ride, the trio instantly formed an inseparable team, with Lucy’s sweetness balancing Bear’s “salty” personality to create the perfect yin and yang. “(Bear’s) grouchy. He’s perfect for a truck-driving dog,” Wehmeyer said with a laugh. “He doesn’t like much of anybody. He just sits up there, and he’s been with me for 14 years.” The team faced a dilemma five years ago when Lucy died, and filling the void was something Wehmeyer approached cautiously. “When Lucy passed away, I went six more months before I got Okie, the new redhead,” he said. “They look just alike, and she’s going on five years old. She doesn’t know anything but the truck; I never left her at a kennel when I went on the road. “At first, I didn’t trust Bear (with Okie) because he’s very aggressive towards other dogs,” he continued. “But with Okie, she was crate trained, so whenever I got out of the truck she would always go in the crate. Then she got old enough where she could kind of fight him off. She just aggravated him, and he didn’t want anything to do with her. He loved his Lucy; they were best friends. He just tolerates Okie.” Together, Wehmeyer and his pups have enjoyed many adventures. They’ve seen all of the lower 48 states, most of the Canadian provinces and, in the past 17 months alone, have made multiple runs to Alaska. “For 14 years, I couldn’t buy a load up there,” he said. “Then last year I did two back to back. This year it didn’t fall into place to get anything. I was at my dad’s house planting bushes one day at the end of September and I got this phone call that said, ‘Hey, we got a load from Florida going to Alaska.’ It’s always military freight, and it paid enough to go up there and come home empty. There’s never any freight coming back.” Wehmeyer, who drives for Mercer Transportation, said he likes the country’s wilder mountainous regions, naming Wyoming and Canada’s Yukon as two particular favorites. Alaska also fits that bill, although there are substantial hazards that come with the state’s abundant natural beauty. “It’s treacherous. I was up there the last week of September, and you could tell there was an urgency of everybody getting their supplies, getting their straw, their wood hauled,” he said. “One month later to the day, I was checking the temperature and the high (up there) was still below zero and snowing every day. So, there’s definitely an on/off switch for when winter hits, and it’ll be that way till the middle of May.” Longer runs such as these also highlight the value of having a fur baby along, Wehmeyer said. “It’s exercise. I get out of that truck at least four or five times extra a day. I plan their stops. I know where the best grass is,” he said. “I think it’s good for my mental health mainly, getting outside the truck. I think that’s the hardest part for a truck driver — you get so cooped up in this truck that you’ve got to come up with more reasons to get out and interact with the world outside.” Bear and Okie are also good alarms for letting Wehmeyer know when someone approaches the truck … that is, as long as the intruder appears during daylight hours. “They will bark. When I’m on the back of the truck working or if I’m on the right side of the truck they’ll bark at anybody that comes up on the left,” he said. “Now as far as at night, they both sleep sounder than me. They’re no help at night. They’re useless at night.” Wehmeyer said he’s noticed a lot more drivers with their pets now than 10 years ago. He said the industry has paid attention to that trend as well, with more trucking centers providing better amenities for dogs to stretch their legs. And, between the miles he’s logged and the photos he’s posted, Bear and Okie have continued the family tradition of being furry celebrities. “I talk to a lot of different people, chatting here and there, that have got pets. We’ve got some customers who get used to seeing them,” Wehmeyer said. “Twelve years ago, we used to run a dedicated deal up to Quebec. When I would cross over the border between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, I would always get in the one lane, because there was a lady that worked there, and she knew them. “The dogs love it because they love barking at everybody. We do job sites and most of the places I go to are like that,” he said. “They love the action.”

There was a time when a career as an over-the-road truck driver was a pipe dream for Derrick Clark. Not long ago, the Little Rock, Arkansas, native was merely surviving a dark period in life where all he could think about was finding a sheltered spot on the street to curl up in before finding his next high. “When I became homeless, things became very hopeless for me. I was out there for a while,” he said. “It is really hard for someone who has been homeless to pull up from their situation because of what they have to deal with. When you make a mistake, everybody wants to focus on your mistake. “I had to get to the point where I would tell people, ‘Thank you for thinking about my failures and my mistakes for me, so I don’t have to think about them. Y’all got that part for me; all I got to think about is a solution,’” he said. Clark’s period of homelessness in adulthood was the culmination of a life lived according to the law of the street. Mimicking the examples of the hustlers and criminals that were his earliest role models, his life as a petty criminal began at age 12. “I’m a projects baby. My value system wasn’t that good because I wasn’t taught not to steal; I was taught not to get caught,” said Clark, now 51. “When I did get caught, I got in some serious trouble that could have put me in the juvenile home. That’s when I moved to my Uncle Mike’s, who taught me some values. I didn’t understand them at the time, but he gave me my work values.” Michael Flowers, Clark’s late uncle, lived in the country, and he put his troubled nephew to work outside. And while the experience didn’t fully take root at the time, it planted a seed of hard work and perseverance that would come to flower later in Clark’s life. “Plato, I think, says that every person wants to be good. I believe that,” Clark said. “Inside of all of us is the inner child that wants to be good, and sometimes that inner child is corrupted by environmental factors, like I did. But it’s always hope for that inner child to come out and blossom like he or she should blossom. The thing is, they need an opportunity.” Clark’s opportunity came in the form of Jericho Way, a Little Rock day center for the homeless. There, he found people who cared about him and genuinely wanted to help him move past his current circumstances. “The first good decision I made to turn my life around was hanging out at Jericho Way,” he said. “People started coming into my life and having a belief in me that I could do more than what I was seeing. Then I start believing in myself.” During this time, Little Rock city leaders were seeking input from the homeless community about life on the streets and how to address it. Clark was one who stepped up to give a firsthand account of being homeless in Arkansas’ capital city. “That experience was awesome because I got to see how other people think and how other people process getting something done,” he said. “It was also terrible, because in my homeless crowd I got ridiculed so bad that some days I just didn’t want to do that no more. I caught a lot of conflict on the street, even name-calling like Uncle Tom, Uncle Remus, Uncle Rufus.” Clark may have been taking on the street flak for his participation, but he was also impressing people at Little Rock City Hall, among them City Director Kathy Webb and City Manager Bruce Moore. “Derrick was very valuable,” Moore said. “When you get that input firsthand, it truly makes a difference. It’s eye-opening; sometimes it can make you feel really inadequate in how we’re dealing with the homeless population.” With the encouragement of Webb, Moore and the staff at Jericho Way, Clark continued his slow march toward self-subsistence. The pace was frustrating, and he was stuck in short-term minimum-wage jobs — until one Christmastime gig turned things around. “The Salvation Army gave me a job ringing bells,” Clark said. “I was ringing the bell, and God told me if I didn’t take any of these people’s money — not saying that I would have, but a lot of other people were taking the money — that he would bless me with work. “Right after that holiday season was over, Arkansas Workforce came to Jericho Way, and God opened all the doors for me to get over every obstacle to become a truck driver,” he continued. In 2017, Clark began driving for New Age Distributing, a local 7-UP distributorship. He was making progress but wasn’t entirely out of his old mindset, and bad habits caught up to him. Seeking a change of scenery, he moved to Houston, where he had difficulty getting started. He was living in a homeless shelter, praying for an opportunity, when he dialed a wrong number. That wrong number reached a trucking company — that offered Clark a job. Since then, Clark has completed rehab and works to continue his progress. He began driving steadily, earning enough to support himself without government assistance. It was a happy ending, but not wholly satisfactory until he called Kathy Webb back in Arkansas with the idea of starting a scholarship fund that would help another person attend trucking school. “I mean, it was like planting a seed and a tree came up out of it,” he said. “All I wanted to do was give $1,000 to pay the down payment for someone to go to Pine Bluff (Arkansas) Trucking School, and let them pay the rest.” Clark put up the money to launch the project, and with the help of his old allies the fund was quickly placed with the Arkansas Community Foundation. Through that group, the J.C. Thompson Trust agreed to match every dollar donated, up to $10,000. “Once you hear the story, it’s hard not to want to help,” Moore said. “This scholarship symbolizes an individual who fell on hard times but never gave up. It wasn’t easy, but [Derrick] knows what it takes to get back to where you want to be. I think he will have the opportunity to make a difference in so many lives that he doesn’t even realize it.” Clark, who now drives for U.S. Xpress in Houston, takes college classes and dreams of writing a book about his journey. He’s excited for the scholarship’s potential, even if most recipients won’t know who’s behind it. “They wanted to name this the Derrick Clark Fund,” he said. “Most of my heroes are very humble people, and I want to remain humble, so I came up with the name Paul Philia Scholarship. Paul means ‘humble’ and philia means ‘brotherly love’ in Greek. So, when you break it down it is called ‘humble brotherly love.’ “This is not just about one person making it. It’s about somebody seeing someone else’s story and helping them make it as well,” he said. To donate, visit www.arcf.org/cdl.