Electric Co-op Today

Most of the lineworkers and co-op staffers who sign on to help the NRECA International Foundation bring electricity to villages in developing countries have said their rewards come when the lights first turn on in rural villages. 

Troy Mead (l), a Kandihoyi Power Co-op lineman, teaches NRECA International’s Hugo Arriaza how to use a bucket truck. (Photo By: KPC)

 But now you could say a federal case is being made out of their service. Nearly 100 co-op staffers, most of them lineworkers, are recipients of the President’s Volunteer Service Award, a national recognition program that honors individuals, groups and families serving their communities. 

“Our co-op volunteers are essential to our program. They provide so much value to our projects and always make a positive impact on the people,” said Ingrid Hunsicker, senior program manager at the NRECA International Foundation. “Our volunteers do it gladly and selflessly, without waiting to be recompensed. I love that we are able to recognize their efforts at a national level.” 

Awardees are recognized at three levels of service: gold award (500-plus hours); silver award (250-499 hours); and bronze award (100-249 hours). Three co-op staffers received gold awards, 18 received silver and 74 received bronze. 

“Many of our volunteers are linemen, but some others have done administrative work or training” at the electrification sites, said Molly Uxa, a program associate at NRECA. “Some have gone on several trips or taken one trip and stayed for one month and accumulated enough hours to meet the threshold.” 

Silver award recipients David Nelson and David George, both of Kandiyohi Power Co-op, will make their ninth trip to Guatemala later this month. “We started off doing lineman training and moved into administrative work,” said Nelson, manager of engineering at the Spicer, Minn., co-op. Besides Nelson and CEO George, three other staffers at the co-op are bronze awardees. 

The hours submitted by NRECA to the White House are cumulative, covering the period between 2005 and 2010. Going forward, NRECA International programs will submit hours from its rural electrification volunteers every year, Uxa said. 

Recipients will get an official President’s Volunteer Award lapel win, a personalized certificate of achievement and a congratulatory letter signed by President Obama.

Tags: International, Lineworkers