United Power recently asked elementary students in its service territory to help demonstrate electrical safety in its annual Electrical Safety Poster Contest. Kids in grades kindergarten through fifth submitted creative and educational posters designed to teach family and friends how to stay safe around electricity. United Power will place winning poster designs on bus benches during the month of May, which is recognized as National Electrical Safety Month.

Employees at the member-owned cooperative voted to select the following winners from each grade for the 2018 Electrical Safety Poster Contest: Zariah McPherson from Reunion Elementary, Joey Seymour from Platteville Elementary, Maddilyn Griffis from Bromley East Charter School, Sofie Archer from Landmark Academy, Troy Wymer from Hoff Elementary, and Kaydence States from Bromley East Charter School.

Congratulations to all the winners, and thank you to all the students who entered their creative safety messages. Look for winning safety posters to appear through the cooperative service territory for the month of May.

United Power is a member-owned, not-for-profit electric cooperative serving more than 83,000 homes and busineses along Colorado’s northern front range. To learn more about United Power, visit www.unitedpower.com or follow the cooperative at Facebook.com/UnitedPower.

When darkness befalls a city, superheroes lace up their boots, throw on their capes and race into danger without a moment’s hesitation. Everyone knows the classic Spider-Man quote, “With great power comes great responsibility.” Every day heroes may not wear capes and fly around the city, but they know when the going gets tough, it’s time for them to get going. 

The Denver area is synonymous with winter storms, and when the metro last experienced the most trying pitfalls of living at the base of the Rocky Mountains in October 2009, United Power linemen were prepped and ready to go as snow blanketed the metro area. Schools and businesses took preemptive action, closing before the storm hit. By the time the last snowflake nestled in with its brethren, snow had been falling for more than 24 hours. 

While area youth enjoyed a day away from the classroom, a different picture unfolded in the Front Range. Coal Creek Canyon, a community within United Power’s mountain service area, had accumulated nearly four feet of snow. 

To put that number into perspective, Chicago’s average annual snowfall is around three feet.  

Calm winds allowed the snow to gingerly build on tree branches, poles, yard ornaments and fences, bringing with it a massive burden. Each new snowflake resting precariously on unsuspecting surfaces brought weight inching toward disaster, like the dastardly plan of a supervillain. Before the storm faded, thousands of Coal Creek residents were without power as tree branches, cross arms and power lines succumbed to the weight of the snow. 

Within moments of the outage, United Power had begun mobilizing crews to diagnose the situation and restore power. Operations Superintendent Mike Lanckriet, a lineman of 32 years, and his crew were among the first to respond. 

“We took careful steps to monitor the storm as it moved into our territory, but we never expected the amount of snow we got,” Lanckriet said. “At times the snow was deeper than our linemen were tall. But we didn’t think of it in terms of challenges. When we arrived, our first focus was what needed to be done to get the power back on.”

United Power linemen wouldn’t let the enormity of the task ahead deter them from accomplishing their goal. They laced up their boots, threw on their tools and raced headfirst into our worst winter storm in more than 12 years.

Crews spent nearly a week battling dense snow, bitter cold and physical and mental fatigue while alternating 14 hour shifts to restore power to Coal Creek. Final repairs, however, took more than two weeks to complete. 

“You try to be as prepared as possible before a large storm, but there’s always a level of unpredictability,” said Kurt Eisenbarth, another United Power superintendent and former lineman. “It takes a different mentality to thrive on that in the most critical situations.”

Living along the Front Range means each winter brings the possibility of another debilitating winter storm, but in reality critical situations come few and far between. Most of the time, linemen are working when the weather’s calm and the sun is shining. It’s easy to forget the service they provide when the situation isn’t seen as “critical,” easy to divorce their role from the danger linemen face each day. 

“It doesn’t take lightning or snow for our job to be dangerous,” said Operations Manager Brent Sydow. “The most routine task requires a high level of care and safety.”

Being a lineman requires hard work, dedication and commitment – to their crew and their work – to doing dangerous work, knowing the fruits of their labor are often misunderstood or unrecognized. 

Residents in a comic book rest easy knowing a superhero is there to save the day when danger rears its head, much like we confidently trust in the unimpeded flow of electricity to power our lives. But when the power fails, our linemen spring into action. 

We invite our members to join us in celebrating National Lineman Appreciation Day on April 18th. Use #ThankALineman on social media to show your support, or take a moment to drop a kind note in the mail. 

Outages can come without warning, from a variety of different situations, but one thing you can count on: when the power goes out, a United Power line crew is already on its way. 

“When the power goes out, it’s about a brotherhood coming together to accomplish a goal, working shoulder to shoulder through blood, sweat and tears,” Eisenbarth said. “At night, they get to be the superheroes.”  
 

Electricity is something many don’t think about until it’s not working. For some, backup plans are already in place to ensure a continual flow of power when storms or high winds threaten to disrupt service. 

The use of portable generators is commonplace during power outages, but you may not know they can potentially create one of the more dangerous situations for the linemen trying to restore power to you and your neighbors. When a generator is plugged into a wall outlet, service panel or breaker box, it produces a “backfeed,” which happens when electrical energy flows in the reverse direction from its normal flow. A backfeed reenergizes the transformer closest to your house, and puts linemen at risk of electrocution. 

Think of a transformer as a funnel. As electricity enters the transformer from the powerlines, it is funneled out at a lower voltage sufficient to provide power to a household. When it enters from the reverse direction, it has the opposite effect, returning the voltage to a higher level. Linemen who are caught unaware of a backfeed could risk serious injury, or even death. 

It is never recommended to plug a generator into a wall outlet, service panel or breaker box; instead, plug appliances and other electrical devices directly into the generator as specified in the product’s operating instructions. In the event you find it necessary to plug the generator into a wall outlet, flipping your property’s main breaker to the “off” position may provide protection to linemen working in the area. This position prevents electricity from flowing into or out of the breaker. Remember to disconnect your generator from the wall outlet prior to turning the breaker back on.

Linemen spend countless hours in dangerous situations making sure power continues to flow to every member in our service area. Help us take the necessary steps to keep them safe. 
 

2018 D.C. Youth Tour Delegates

United Power selected three local students to represent the cooperative at this year’s Cooperative Youth Tour in Washington D.C in June. Hannah Rockwell of Brighton, Megan Lewis from Firestone and Jordyn Saffy of Brighton were selected based on academic performance, extracurricular activities, volunteer efforts and a brief essay.

Local electric cooperatives throughout the country sponsor approximately 1,500 ambitious high school students from small towns and cities for an incredible week in the nation’s capital with the objective of providing an educational experience for young people on the organization and operation of a cooperative. Cooperatives are committed to educating America’s rural youth about the country and the role electric cooperatives play in developing strong rural communities. 

Hannah Rockwell is a student at Weld Central High School where she is an athlete in cross country and track. She is a member of the National Honor Society and president of her school’s Future Business Leaders of America Club. Hannah loves school and her future plans include pursuing a career in medicine. 

Megan Lewis attends Frederick High School, where she is a member of the National Honor Society and the Student Advisory Committee. Megan is active in musicals/plays at her school, and is on both the varsity cross country and tennis teams. Her future plans include college and medical school. 

Jordyn Saffy attends high school at Eagle Ridge Academy. Jordan is captain of the volleyball team, president of the spirit team and participates in track and field. Her future plans include a degree in health sciences, which she intends to use to help those in need.

2018 Youth Leadership Camp Winners

United Power has also selected Brooklyn Stubby of Mapleton Early College in Commerce City and Catera Gagna of Brighton to represent the cooperative at the 2018 Cooperative Youth Leadership Camp in Steamboat Springs, Colorado this July. The camp is offered to high school juniors and seniors in the United Power service area. Interested students are asked to apply, and winners are selected based on academic performance, extracurriculr activities and volunteer efforts. 

The primary objective of the camp is to provide an educational experience for youth on the organization and operation of a cooperative. The camp strives to help develop leadership skills that will assist students with challenges they will face in the future.

Brooklyn Stubby attends Mapleton Early College and is active in student council, swimming and student mentoring. Brooklyn is keeping her options open, but is considering physical therapy, detective work or personal training/nutrition. 

Catera Gagna is a student at Brighton High School and plays softball. She is a member of the principal’s honor roll, student government and volunteers at a local elementary school. Catera plans to attend college and pursue a career in engineering.

Brighton, CO — For the first time since 2005, the four incumbents in United Power’s upcoming director election will run unopposed. Due to the lack of challengers, the board of directors has decided to conduct a simplified, cost-saving balloting process this year.

In previous elections, ballots were mailed to members who could then submit their votes via return mail; however, ballots this year will be cast in person at the Annual Meeting and Director Election on April 18 at the Adams County Fairgrounds in Brighton, 9755 Henderson Road. 

During registration, members in attendance at the annual meeting will receive a ballot and be able to cast their votes for candidates in each of the director seats up for election. Although directors run in geographic districts in order to accurately represent United Power members, they are elected at-large, meaning members are able to cast a vote in each district.

The candidates for director are Susan Petrocco in the South District, Tim Erickson in the East District, Brian A. McCormick in the West District and Rick Newman in the Mountain District.

Members are encouraged to attend the Annual Meeting not only to cast their vote in this year’s director election, but also to engage with the cooperative’s leadership and learn about ways United Power is implementing innovative processes to provide the most reliable power across its service area. 

This year’s Annual Meeting includes a free barbecue dinner, live music and a presentation from United Power’s CEO, John Parker. Following the conclusion of the meeting, members are eligible to win one of many available door prizes, including a Kitchen Aid mixer, Keurig and more. 

Member registration opens at 4:30 p.m., and the official business meeting begins at approximately 6:30 p.m. Election results will be announced at the conclusion of the business meeting. For more information about this year’s meeting, including candidate profiles, dinner menu and a list of door prizes, go to www.unitedpower.com/annualmeeting.

When severe weather hits, there’s one group United Power and its members rely on to keep the power on. On April 18th, we will join in celebrating National Lineman Appreciation Day, honoring the hard work, innovation and dedication of America’s electrical lineworkers. 

Linemen must be prepared to face daily situations that may be less than ideal, regularly tasked with resolving intricate and hazardous problems in unknown or perilous conditions. It requires a strong commitment to one another and doing dangerous work, knowing the fruits of their labor are often misunderstood or unrecognized. 

In the line of duty, the smallest mistake could be the difference between life and death. When our linemen lace up their boots, they understand the dedication they must have to safely complete their work in the quickest possible way. 

“Electric linemen are the backbone of what we do,” said Bryant Robbins, United Power Chief Operations Officer. “They go above and beyond on a daily basis, often in hazardous conditions far from their families, to restore power to their communities.”

Our linemen are on call 24 hours a day, ready to respond to any situation in any type of weather. So next time you lose power, rest assured a highly trained United Power crew is on the way, dedicated to getting the lights back on quickly and safely. 

“When the power is off, that’s when we’re at our best and it’s our time to shine,” said Mark Keith, United Power foreman. “We get out there no matter the weather, and get to work figuring out how to solve the problem.”

Regularly facing difficult situations, it’s no surprise electrical lineworkers have one of the most dangerous jobs in the country. In 2017, electrical powerline installers and repairers were noted to have the 15th most dangerous profession. 

Without our linemen, the power that makes our member’s homes comfortable wouldn’t be possible. We invite our members to take a moment to thank our United Power linemen for the work they do. Use #ThankALineman on social media to show your support, or take a moment to drop a kind note in the mail.