There’s never any question about who’s providing the turkey on Thanksgiving at Terence Williamson’s house.
Some things just don’t need questioning.
The flexibility to do stuff outside of work and have a work-life balance was important to me. ALDOT is a great place to work because of that and I honestly love working here.
Terence Williamson
Williamson, 39, has won six major turkey calling championships and is a two-time grand national champion in the air and friction turkey calling division. He will aim for another trophy at the World Championship Turkey Calling Contest on June 7-8 at the Mobile Convention Center.
“You get out of something whatever you put into it,” Williamson said. “I love it and have met a lot of nice people along the way.”
Williamson isn’t just a talented turkey caller. He also serves as the construction engineer for ALDOT’s Tuscaloosa Area in the West Central Region where he oversees major projects, including the US-82 Rebuild Alabama Act project and US-11 widening project. He began his career with the state in 2005 and earned his professional engineering license along the way. Williamson said he enjoys working at ALDOT because of the flexible schedule that allows him to hunt and compete in turkey calling competitions.
“The flexibility to do stuff outside of work and have a work-life balance was important to me,” Williamson said. “ALDOT is a great place to work because of that, and I honestly love working here.”
That flexibility allowed Williamson to design his own turkey call that bears his signature and is sold throughout the country. He has also appeared on various hunting podcasts and is sponsored by industry giants like Mossy Oak, Dixie Cupped and Rolling Thunder.
Williamson credits his love of hunting and turkey calling competitions to his father. He went on his first hunt at 4 years old and participated in his first competition at 10. Although he finished last in his first competition, he said it only drove him to become better.
“I don’t like losing,” Williamson said. “If I’m going to do something, I want to be the best at it.”
Williamson is married and has two sons, 6 and 12 years old. The eldest has already made waves in the junior division of the World Championships with a top-five finish and trains to become even better. Williamson’s wife is supportive of her husband and sons, but it can sometimes become too loud in the house during practice.
“We have to practice on the complete opposite end of the house,” Williamson said, smiling. “She loves seeing him compete and wants him to do his best, but it can be noisy at times. You know, I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for my dad taking me on my first hunt and helping teach me. I want to teach my boys and share this experience and make memories with them.”
