• Born in Fort Morgan, Colorado, and has eight siblings.

• Married to Betty for 19 years and has two sons, five daughters and 16 grandchildren with one on the way.

• Describes himself as caring, understanding, dependable, family oriented and fun-loving. His coworkers describe him as a great foreman who cares about his coworkers, family and friends. He is also described as extremely knowledgeable, caring, honest and supportive.

• Enjoys fishing, hunting and watching his grandchildren play sports. In addition, he likes spending time with his family and going on trips to the lake. Every winter, he also enjoys elk hunting with some of his older grandkids.

• His favorite boss was John Eddings, because he always believed in his crew, and he would allow them to make their own decisions. His favorite coworker was the late Dave Tarver, whom he met in November 1981. They worked as pole buddies for 27 years.

• Can't live without his channel locks and pliers.

• Inspired by his seven children, who always handle what life deals them.

Early Years

I had a brother-in-law working in power line construction. When I graduated from high school, he asked me if I wanted to work for him. That was back in 1968. I worked as a groundman for Douglas Construction, and my first job was working on a 115-kV structure in Ogallala, Nebraska. After three or four months, I started climbing, and then eventually I became a lineman.

At the age of 21, I ran a wire stringing crew for Commonwealth Electric. When I worked for that company, I did work in three states: Nebraska, Colorado and Wyoming. I joined Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association in 1981 as a journeyman lineman and have been with the company ever since.

Day in the Life

As an area supervisor, I never have a typical day because every single one is a little bit different. Sometimes I am lining up work in the office for the crew, and other times, I'm responsible for a line patrol. I also meet with landowners or environmentalists, or attend meetings in the main office with line superintendents.

I am stationed out of Brush, Colorado, and right now, we are adding a bay so we can make room for a new 230-kV line being built. In my current job position, I'm not climbing poles much anymore, but I make sure the apprentices are getting their share of the work.

Challenges and Rewards

One of the biggest challenges is working with all the different personalities and making sure that the crew is focused on the job at hand. It's also difficult being away from home and missing out on some of the family functions. The reward of doing a good day's work when everything falls into place and you get the job done.

Safety Lesson

When I was 21 and working for Commonwealth Electric, I had a groundman who wanted to learn how to climb. He was hanging some line so we could pull in a conductor, and when he went to move down, he flipped the stare strap around the pole, and it came around and hit him in the back of the neck and knocked him out. His fell 75 ft off a 90-ft pole. Sadly, his younger brother was with him.

Memorable Storm

Three years ago, we had 6 miles of 230-kV line go down during a freak snow storm. We pulled four different crews together, and we were able to get the line back in service in three-and-a-half weeks. It made me feel good because I was the one running the crew. Everyone did a super job. That was one of my favorite projects because everything went so well. It doesn't happen like that all the time.

Future Plans

If I had to start all over, I might and I might not go into the power industry again. I see a lot of changes in it, and for an old lineman, the government rules and regulations they have these days are kind of hard for me sometimes.

In a few years, I would like to retire, and my wife and I would like to take a few trips we've always talked about. Her grandfather came over from Italy, and I would like to take her there for one trip. I'd also like to go on an Alaskan cruise.