HI! My name is Lorrie.

I am a recruiter by trade. I recruit truck drivers. I work and have worked for many years with a multitude of these professionals. Truck Driver recruiters enjoy horrendous reputations. Many of my fellow recruiters are paid by the hire, and the industry is in a desperately alarming need for drivers, so they may resort to some not so honest tactics to getting drivers in the seats of their company’s trucks. The joke that resonates with the drivers is that you can tell a recruiter is lying when his/her lips are moving.

I strive to set myself apart as a recruiter by not being like this. I have resolved to always put the good of the driver first. What is best for the driver is usually best for the company as well, and everyone wins. Even if that means referring a great candidate elsewhere for a better fit.

Trying to maintain and act out a Christian Spirit in such an environment can be a challenge. Vulgar language, gender bias and harassment, and egotistical egos can prevail, as well as unscrupulous attitudes toward government regulations and rules.

There have been many days when conjuring up the courage to take a stand and advocate for what is right has been very challenging. There have been many times that I have failed and remained silent, and a coward.

What a truly magnificent place to evangelize though, and mostly without verbal direction, but by just going about the day acting with charity and kindness. There is a definite crustiness and hardness about many of the people I come into contact on a daily basis, but what a victory when you can elicit a smile and soften a heart hardened by this world and the industry I find myself engrossed in daily. What tremendous opportunities exist in such a place.

These opportunities are there for all of us. We can’t do it alone though. I have noticed that since I have dedicated myself to a more committed practice of prayer, daily rosary, weekly adoration, and a truly non-superficial approach to praise and worship at Mass; I find charity and the recognition of Truth to be a bit easier. Not a piece of cake by any means, but at least something that I can do without fear and anxiety.

I still find myself fumbling and failing. I sometimes catch myself falling back into old vices and modes of behavior, but I keep on trying. I am starting to find the drivers my coworkers deem unbearable, becoming my favorites. I notice that some of my coworkers, who never wore a smile, do so now. I can see the transformations all around me. Have I preached one word to any of them? Not really. I have just decided to try and see everyone as a child of God, someone that God loves and cherishes, and so someone I must love as well. He has commanded it. I receive a tremendous gift of joy in return for my efforts.

So, as I end my work each day, I go to the time clock, punch out and I reflect that even on the worst days, I have triumphed. I have brought more to my work place than a new driver to employ. Hopefully, through the work of the Holy Spirit, I have brought some joy of Christ to those around me, without ever mentioning his name. We should all challenge ourselves to this task, every day.