The Women In Trucking Association (WIT) has announced Ginger Pitts as its March 2022 Member of the Month. Ginger is an Automated Side Loader (ASL) Recycling Truck driver for Waste Management (WM) in Oklahoma City.
Ginger is a native Oklahoman who grew up in Enid and moved to OKC about seven years ago. She has quite the entrepreneurial spirit as she ran a restaurant in Enid for almost 20 years before changing careers and starting a business. Her business transported pets of military families across the country from one duty station to the next because pets aren’t included in the moving process. Ginger visited nearly every state in the nation before being injured while acting as a good Samaritan helping a stranded motorist.
While Ginger was recuperating from the shoulder injury, she started training to drive a school bus. The training she received put her on the pathway to becoming a truck driver. As a child, she always loved watching the trash trucks empty the large metal cans and throwing them like they weighed nothing at all, but never dreamed of the possibility of driving a truck someday. She drove a school bus for Mustang Public Schools and loved interacting with all the children. However, in May 2020, the school district shut down because of the pandemic.
Ginger saw a sign that WM was hiring and decided to apply. She was hired and said she had finally found her niche. Ginger says the joystick-type controller is like playing a video game. There’s a great deal of skill involved in using the joystick to empty the recycling carts without damaging or knocking them down.
Each day her mission is the same, emptying an estimated 900 carts and returning each one to its original place without any damage or failure.
“One of the things that many people don’t know is the unique service offered to senior citizens or disabled individuals in that even with the automated trucks; the driver will stop the truck, retrieve the cart, empty it, and place it back in its spot. It is so rewarding to help these folks!” she said.
A big benefit of the job is the smiles she receives from the children on her route. Ginger always waves or honks the horn for them. One young boy on her route draws pictures all about the recycling truck and all the recycled items. He leaves the pictures on the cart, and she keeps them in her truck and on her refrigerator at home.
One thing most people don’t know about Ginger is that she is in Oklahoma’s Amateur Softball Association (ASA) Hall of Fame. She received this honor because of her skill as a shortstop for over 35 years in Oklahoma.
Ginger loves her job and encourages other women to join, saying, “Don’t hesitate! Women can do anything! It’s a great industry! Jump in and enjoy the ride!”
WM is a sponsor of the Salute to Women Behind the Wheel, an event hosted by WIT to celebrate female CDL holders on Friday, March 25, 2022 at the Mid-American Trucking Show in Louisville, KY.
