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American Morning
Real People and Their Money: Ballet Teacher Turned Truck Driver
Aired October 31, 2002 - 07:43 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: She had been a ballet instructor, teaching such graceful arts (ph) as the first position and second position. Well, now she's learning to shift from first gear to second gear and so on, training to be a truck driver.
Well, hard times have forced many people to put off their retirement or make career changes, and today in our weekly report on "Real People and Their Money," we'll meet someone who is doing both.
Ballet teacher turned truck driver Cheryl Burgquist joins us now from Phoenix, Arizona.
Good morning. How are you?
CHERYL BURGQUIST, TRUCKER: Hello.
HARRIS: I must tell you that this struck me as one of the signs of the Apocalypse, when ballet teachers now become truck drivers, we've hit some hard times here.
What made you decide to come out of retirement?
BURGQUIST: I have three sons, and my middle son was kind of -- well, he's a surfer, and he's a snow boarder and that kind of thing. And he was not getting his act together to find a career.
And so, I started looking for something for him to do, and in the process of researching out different job opportunities, looking for something that he could do for the next 20 years and retire from, I hit upon over-the-road truck driving.
And once I did all of the research, I went to my husband and said, 'You know what? Even if Jimmy doesn't want to do this, I think I'd like to.'
HARRIS: Why? Now, what in the world appeals to you about this kind of job?
BURGQUIST: Well, first of all, I was born into a theatrical family; thus, I became a ballet instructor. Yet, I learned to read out of the AAA road books that, you know, on the road with my parents taking vacations. And I loved to be on the road and traveling.
And I always thought when I was little, when I saw the big rigs going by, boy, if I was a man, that's what I'd do. HARRIS: OK, now, let me ask you this, then. Does your ballet training in any way lend you some special skills and special expertise and it makes it easier for you to make this transition?
BURGQUIST: Well, I can jump up and down out of the truck a little bit easier, and I think my double shifting, I've got a little bit coordination for that maybe.
HARRIS: OK, well, you know, too bad we don't have any video of you doing that right now. But let me ask you, you know, a lot of people are making changes like this in their lives, because they have to, and because they're really worried about the economy. In which camp would you put yourself in? Are you worried about where the economy is heading right now?
BURGQUIST: Well, I think everybody is. My husband is retired, and we discussed the fact that if something happened to him, I've got almost 10 years before I would be able to collect on social security. So, we thought, well, this is kind of a fallback.
And I just think that a lot of people are retiring earlier, and have, you know, time to do a second career.
HARRIS: So, how long do you think this career is going to last?
BURGQUIST: Well, they told me that if I drive for two years over the road, I could then become a teacher. And I think that's what I really would like to do.
However, starting out, my son and I will be team driving over the road. So, I'm going to do that with him a couple of years to make sure he does it.
HARRIS: All right, well, good for you and good for him. And we want to see both of you succeed now.
BURGQUIST: Well, thank you.
HARRIS: All right, good luck to you and your son as well -- Cheryl Burgquist.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
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Aired October 31, 2002 - 07:43 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: She had been a ballet instructor, teaching such graceful arts (ph) as the first position and second position. Well, now she's learning to shift from first gear to second gear and so on, training to be a truck driver.
Well, hard times have forced many people to put off their retirement or make career changes, and today in our weekly report on "Real People and Their Money," we'll meet someone who is doing both.
Ballet teacher turned truck driver Cheryl Burgquist joins us now from Phoenix, Arizona.
Good morning. How are you?
CHERYL BURGQUIST, TRUCKER: Hello.
HARRIS: I must tell you that this struck me as one of the signs of the Apocalypse, when ballet teachers now become truck drivers, we've hit some hard times here.
What made you decide to come out of retirement?
BURGQUIST: I have three sons, and my middle son was kind of -- well, he's a surfer, and he's a snow boarder and that kind of thing. And he was not getting his act together to find a career.
And so, I started looking for something for him to do, and in the process of researching out different job opportunities, looking for something that he could do for the next 20 years and retire from, I hit upon over-the-road truck driving.
And once I did all of the research, I went to my husband and said, 'You know what? Even if Jimmy doesn't want to do this, I think I'd like to.'
HARRIS: Why? Now, what in the world appeals to you about this kind of job?
BURGQUIST: Well, first of all, I was born into a theatrical family; thus, I became a ballet instructor. Yet, I learned to read out of the AAA road books that, you know, on the road with my parents taking vacations. And I loved to be on the road and traveling.
And I always thought when I was little, when I saw the big rigs going by, boy, if I was a man, that's what I'd do. HARRIS: OK, now, let me ask you this, then. Does your ballet training in any way lend you some special skills and special expertise and it makes it easier for you to make this transition?
BURGQUIST: Well, I can jump up and down out of the truck a little bit easier, and I think my double shifting, I've got a little bit coordination for that maybe.
HARRIS: OK, well, you know, too bad we don't have any video of you doing that right now. But let me ask you, you know, a lot of people are making changes like this in their lives, because they have to, and because they're really worried about the economy. In which camp would you put yourself in? Are you worried about where the economy is heading right now?
BURGQUIST: Well, I think everybody is. My husband is retired, and we discussed the fact that if something happened to him, I've got almost 10 years before I would be able to collect on social security. So, we thought, well, this is kind of a fallback.
And I just think that a lot of people are retiring earlier, and have, you know, time to do a second career.
HARRIS: So, how long do you think this career is going to last?
BURGQUIST: Well, they told me that if I drive for two years over the road, I could then become a teacher. And I think that's what I really would like to do.
However, starting out, my son and I will be team driving over the road. So, I'm going to do that with him a couple of years to make sure he does it.
HARRIS: All right, well, good for you and good for him. And we want to see both of you succeed now.
BURGQUIST: Well, thank you.
HARRIS: All right, good luck to you and your son as well -- Cheryl Burgquist.
TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com.
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