The Tonya Hudkins McCartor

Freedom For Tonya Hudkins McCartor (Margo Freshwater)

The History of Tonya Hudkins McCartor
(a.k.a. Margo Freshwater)
Written by her husband, Daryl McCartor

It was the start of the early 70’s. Tonya’s first husband had left her with two small children in Ashland, Ohio. Both children were not yet school age. She did not have any skills to speak of, but knew only that she needed to keep a roof over her family's heads and food on the table, and clothing for the winter ahead.

She got a job as a nurse's aid during the day, and in the evening worked cleaning homes, taking her children with her. At that time, she and her children were living on the third floor of a hotel, and she was going hungry to make sure that her babies could eat and survive.

From there she managed to get a better paying job working in a dinner club as a waitress and doing part time office work after moving to Mansfield, OH. As things started to improve, she landed a job managing the bar at a country club. From there, she found a job as office manger & bookkeeper with Galion Gladhill Equipment company, in Galion, OH.

In the mid-70’s, she moved to Marion, OH, where she landed a better paying job as plant secretary for Tuskarora plastics, and sometimes she would help in the dispatching of their trucks.

In July of 1976 she met her late husband, Joe Hudkins.

In December of that year he proposed, and they were soon married. After two and a half years with Tuskarora, she took some time off.

Going back to work, she was a nurse's aid at the community nursing home in Marion, OH, during which time she became pregnant with her son, Tim, the youngest of her three. Along with Joe's three children, they now had a total of six children in the family.

She later found a better job at Grief Brothers in charge of payroll for hourly personnel. When they closed up shop, she was hired at Maze Jewelry store as a bookkeeper.

By 1980, she had started her career in the insurance field with J.C. Penney. Her husband Joe died in 1988, leaving her with her three children to finish raising (Joe’s children were grown and had moved away by that time).

When J.C. Penney was bought out by MetLife, she stayed with them until 1990. She then went to work for AAA, and was with them for 4 years. At the end of that time she was made an offer to be and administrative assistant for the MetLife area office in Columbus, OH. She remained there as a licensed agent and administrative assistant until 1999.

In that year, she met me, her current husband. After some long weekends going on the truck with him on his runs she asked if she could learn to drive his big rig. Her late husband had wanted to show her how to drive a truck, but died before he could teach her. During her 12 years as a widow she learned ballroom dancing and danced competitively; so I said I would teach her to drive the truck if she would teach me to dance better.

During 1999, she became proficient enough to get her CDL with a HAZMAT endorsement. In January of that year, she and I talked about becoming a team on the road. So she gave notice to Metlife in February that she was going to quit her job. Just after she gave her notice to MetLife, I had an accident with my ankle and had to ask Tonya to come get the truck since I could not drive due to the injury. That was the first time she had ever driven the truck by herself.

After I had been off work for four weeks, it was time for us to lease on with the new company we were going to haul for. However, I was still on crutches and could not do any city driving. So, Tonya did all the city driving, and I could only drive for two hours at any one time. We started our runs to California and back to Ohio that way switching off every two hours non-stop out and back for the next three months. If Tonya had not quit her job to go on the road with me, I would have lost the truck. There was no way I could have driven by myself.

I thank God for having put Tonya in my life.

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