Ep. 6 // Garrie & Avis Atkins: The Art of Showing Up

Show Notes

40 years at Nussbaum. 48 years of marriage. And those aren’t final numbers. Garrie and Avis Atkins are tried and true devotees to Nussbaum Transportation and each other. Scrounge secrets from them as they dive into the art of showing up – while driving, in marriage, and at work.

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40 Years at Nussbaum

Garrie dives into his longevity at Nussbaum. From his first glimpse of the company, through 23 years in a truck cab, and the twists of transitioning into the office for 17 years (and counting).

“I didn’t know if they wanted me in the office or if they wanted me off the road.”

He divulges how the hardest part of being a driver isn’t the terrible traffic, the uncooperative weather, or the waiting. It’s being away from home.

48 Years Together

Even though they lived two miles apart their entire lives, Garrie and Avis’ love story didn’t start until Garrie graduated from high school. And even then, it wasn’t all fireworks and heart eyes – Avis’ mom liked Garrie before Avis did! But Avis was the first girl Garrie ever dated, and she’s dedicated to being the last girl he ever dates.

Infatuation molded into love as life carried on – bending, shaping, and opening each other’s eyes to what dedication, protection, and steadfastness meant.

“It takes a strong woman to be the wife of a truck driver.”

The Art of Showing Up

Garrie and Avis will inspire you with gumption – guaranteed – with the art of showing up. At work, in your marriage, while driving… Show up. Just show up each day. These are all hard jobs – being married, staying committed to a job, driving in general – but remember that each day is a new day. Keep going!

Quotes

• “If you work hard for the people that you work for, you will always have a job.”
• “I didn’t know if they wanted me in the office or if they wanted me off the road.”
• “I passed a state police officer that was sitting on the side of the road. So, I pulled over and shook my shirt out a little bit, and he pulled up behind me. And I walked back to his car, and I said, ‘Did you see that??’ And he goes, ‘No, I was just wondering why you stopped.’ And I said, ‘Well I just got my windshield shattered in!’”
• “I can honestly tell you that I did not love Avis when I married her. I was infatuated with her. She was the greatest thing since buttered toast. This girl was just the world to me. But I had no idea what love was.”
• “I could have saved so much money and had so many more motorcycles than what I’ve had!”
• “It takes a strong woman to be the wife of a truck driver.”
• “You get to work with people that you now know better – it’s kind of like a marriage, but you don’t have to go home with them. It makes all the things that you do in your work vocation more predictable. It makes things more secure.”

Pictures

Links

• Dr. James Dobson Family Institute
• Merrill Lynch
• Video of NCHA cutting horse
• Garrie Atkins blog post: The Grass is Always Greener… Over There!