Submitted photo Danielle Hickman of North Lima was recently named a semifinalist in the third annual Women Driving Auto Retail contest sponsored by the National Automobile Dealers Association for her drive and commitment to her retail position with Young Trucks.

EDITOR’S NOTE: This is one of a series of Saturday profiles of area residents and their stories. To suggest a profile, contact features editor Burton Cole at bcole@tribtoday.com.

NORTH LIMA — The roar of engines fills Danielle Hickman’s world.

The North Lima resident, an outside parts saleswoman for Young Trucks of Canton, began racing dune buggies in her youth. Upon entering the workforce, she was unable to keep up with her passion, but says she is thinking about getting back to it.

When asked if she misses racing, she said, “All the time,” with a laugh.

“With the dune buggies, it was something my dad had raised us on,” she said, noting that younger sister Daynna also raced. “He promised that when I could reach the pedals, he would teach me how to drive one.”

Hickman raced her father’s buggy from the late 1970s to the early ’80s. Nearby was a racetrack where she grew up, but it since has closed. That was around the time she began working, which was often on the weekends, which also was when the races were held.

“I really didn’t know what field I would eventually get into, but as long as it had an engine, I knew I would be happy,” she said.

She was recently named one of 10 semifinalists in the National Automobile Dealers Association third annual Women Driving Auto Retail contest, which is a national video initiative recognizing women in the industry. Hickman has worked at Young Trucks for a year and a half.

“I am excited that I was named a semifinalist, but I am even more excited that we were the first truck company to enter the contest and actually place.”

Studying automotive collision repair, Hickman attended Columbiana County Career and Technical Center in Lisbon. Hickman, 30, said that from a young age, she wanted to work on engines.

“I figured my dad would teach me the mechanical side while I could learn the collision side of the business.”

After graduating from technical school, Hickman worked at a collision center. Then it closed. So she said she went back to school to earn an associate’s degree in business from the Ohio Valley College of Technology in East Liverpool.

Hickman worked at a local parts store for a while, working her way up the ranks to top management.

Deciding she wanted a new challenge, Hickman applied for a position at Young Trucks, although she said she didn’t know much about the vehicles.

Traveling around eastern Ohio, western Pennsylvania and part of West Virginia, Hickman said she goes “to different repair facilities and trucking companies to see if there’s anything I can help with.”

Craig Young, who is the third-generation ownership of the family company, said Hickman’s personality was an immediate indicator to what type of candidate she would be for the job.

“I could tell right away that Danielle had a winning attitude, that she wanted to challenge herself and be personally and professionally successful,” Young said in a news release about her award.

Within two weeks of being hired, Hickman was learning about trucks.

Although her chosen industry is a male-dominated one, Hickman said that everyone should consider it.

Calling her place of employment “the most welcoming environment I have ever worked,” she said the family atmosphere is what is keeping her in the field.