Army veteran Ashley Leiva’s trucking career received a major upgrade.
Leiva, of Corpus Christi, Texas, was the recipient of the 2022 Transition Trucking: Driving Excellence Award for rookie drivers transitioning from active duty military to commercial fleets. The honor includes a new Kenworth T680 Next Generation truck.
“This is certainly a very special moment for me,” she said in a press release. “My mother inspired me to go into truck driving. She said driving a truck made her feel like she was on top of the world.”
The program, now in its seventh year, is presented by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Hiring Our Heroes initiative in partnership with Kenworth and Fastport, which helps veterans find jobs.
The U.S. Census Bureau estimates there are 3.5 million employed as truck drivers, and one in 10 are veterans.
Leiva and her brother, Johnny, work for Noemi Trucking in Corpus Christi. The siblings renamed the company after their late mother who founded the business.
Leiva began driving with her brother after graduating from Del Mar College’s transportation program. She joined the program following her 2021 retirement from the Army, where she served 16 years.
