West Penn Power
- Born in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania, as the youngest of five children.
- Mom of two grown daughters, Jackie and Jill, and has four grandchildren: Caitlin, 25; Jacob, 24; Ashton, 16 and Kingston, 12. She also has two great-grandchildren, Mason, 5; Avarie, 1 and Zayden, seven months.
- Enjoys vintage and modern cars and attends car shows that raise money for a variety of different charities in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and the surrounding areas.
- Only one in her family to work in the utility industry.
Early Years
I started in the utility industry on the coal-fired generation side of the business as a laborer at Hatfield’s Ferry Power Station. After a little over a year, I transferred into a lineworker position. Since then, I have remained in the line trade and worked as a journeyman lineworker and lead lineworker for many years.
Day in the Life
I am currently a line troubleshooter for West Penn Power, a FirstEnergy company. In this role, I respond to outages and trouble calls. I make the repairs myself, if possible, but if I need help, I request a crew and share all the information they need to get the job done. I work in a very busy shop, so most of my day is running trouble. We work 10-hour shifts, and the day goes by rather quickly.
Challenges and Rewards
The major rewards of my job are helping the customer with any issues they are facing and, as always, restoration of service. In the early years, being a female in a male-dominated field always presented challenges. For the most part, you had to prove yourself daily. I am fortunate to work in a line shop where I am considered a valuable employee.
Tools and Technology
I started in the work-harder-not-smarter generation, and the struggle was real. It was even a tougher job 35 years ago, and it was a different era when I came up through the ranks. There was no Buck Squeeze to make climbing poles safer, and no fall protection for tower work. We had old-school tools not the battery-operated tools like the presses and cutters that are used today. The introduction of these tools was a game changer for the longevity of lineworkers.
Safety Lesson
I was called to a pole fire on a three-phase line where the next pole had solid blades to disconnect the power. The pole had severe damage and was ready to fall over with the facilities still energized. I had responders and safety forces stand back far enough out of the zone to ensure their safety. I called dispatch to open the circuit at the substation and while they were in the process of doing that, the pole burned off in front of all of us and went phase- to-phase. It was a real wake-up call to all involved.
Memorable Storm
My most memorable storm moment was Superstorm Sandy in New Jersey where we were stationed for one month. The devastation was unimaginable, and I have been on many storms over my career.
Making a Difference
Right now, I am a speaker for my company at various levels about diversity, equity and inclusion for FirstEnergy. I have mentored young females in the Female Leaders in Energy (FLIE) program through the United States Energy Association in Washington, D.C. I was also a guest speaker at the APEC 2023 summit in Seattle, Washington, to speak about gender equality in the energy sector.
Plans for the Future
I would absolutely do it all over again. This work is so rewarding and has put in a financial situation that I could never have imagined as single mom in the early 1990s. For me, retirement will be in the near future. I hope to give back to the energy sector and mostly try to get more women involved in line work.
