How One Couple Built a Life of Service Outside the Truck

Jay and Katt Hosty have been happily married for over 41 years, and they’ve spent those years building a business and life of service.

When they started their business, they had no family in trucking, no truck-driving school, and no prior trucking jobs. They simply purchased their first truck and forged ahead directly into the uncharted territory of becoming owner operators.

With their business up and running, Jay and Katt have found so many ways to give back through the years. Through their commitment to supporting the needs of displaced children, the couple has provided foster care for more than 100 children over the decades, fully adopting eight.

Jay also served on the OOIDA board of directors for 16 years, selected for the role in 1994 at only 32 years old.

In the year 2000, Hosty had the opportunity to travel to a small Mexican village with his church to assist in digging a well. He described his interaction with the families there as both humbling and rewarding and the entire experience as one he won’t soon forget.

Being owner operators gives the Hostys the ability to volunteer to the causes they choose whenever they would like. Most recently, Jay “paused” his business to volunteer with Eight Days of Hope, an organization that helps communities devastated by natural disasters.

Jay and his family survived Hurricane Katrina themselves, but lost their home, truck, and trailer at that time, so he’s been there, and knows first-hand the struggles that people can go through in these situations. Jay and Katt never gave up hope, and after about a year, they were able to relocate and start over.

While working with a team to help people he’d never met, Jay maintained the utmost respect for those he was there to help, reminding others on the team that when invited into someone’s home to help, they are also still guests in that home. With this in mind, he encouraged them to respect others and embrace an attitude of openness without discrimination.

The benefits of volunteering, of living a life of service, can often far outweigh missing a pay day here and there. Besides, volunteering can often pay off in unexpected ways that are sure to benefit those who chose to live a sincere and honest life of serving others.

 

Source: Overdrive