Baldwin EMC Feature
Serving Co-op and CountRy
Baldwin EMC's John Lyon wears two uniforms - one as a lineman and one as a soldier for the Army National Guard.
By Michelle Ricard
Baldwin EMC lineman John Lyon, pictured above, left his home and family in April for a tour of duty in Afghanistan.
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y the time this magazine is printed, John Lyon will have left a comfortable life in Baldwin County, Alabama for a tour of duty in Afghanistan. In April, Lyon was deployed to the wartorn country as a Staff Sargeant in the United States Army National Guard. His deployment meant temporarily saying goodbye to a wife and three children, his home and his work as a lineman for Baldwin EMC.
It's a scene he's played out before. This is Lyon's second time to be deployed overseas. Eight years ago, he spent 12 months in Iraq, not long after the start of combat in that country. Lyon says it's a different experience to be in a country at the start of a war as opposed to this time, considering the fact that U.S. combat operations in Afghanistan are expected to end by 2014. However, there's always reason to be concerned, especially considering a rise in what's referred to as "green-on-blue" violence, or an increase in attacks on coalition forces by Afghan police and military.
Lyon's lineman duties will be on hold for now. His job will be held open until he returns from overseas.
Alabama Living
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Lyon joined the Army 20 years ago. "I was in high school when I got in. A couple of my friends had joined, and I just looked at it as an opportunity to serve my country," he says. "Once I got into it, there was more to it, like good retirement opportunities." It was a similar motivation that prompted him to apply for work at Baldwin EMC three years after joining the Army, in 1995. "I needed a job, and this was a good workplace." While he's deployed, Baldwin EMC will keep Lyon's job open, and his fellow linemen will cover for him while he serves his country overseas. And while his orders from the Army say he could be in Afghanistan for a maximum of 400 days, Lyon says that's easily subject to change. "They aren't training anybody up to take our place," Lyon explains, "So we may be over there a couple extra months or it might end earlier. You never know." As a lineman for Baldwin EMC for the past 18 years, Lyon has worked power restoration through hurricanes and other storms, involving long hours and nasty conditions. But overseas deployment poses a completely different set of challenges, including basic living conditions. Lyon says in Afghanistan, there won't be much luxury to speak of. "From what I hear, we'll be living in two-man conexes, kind of like railroad shipping containers." But on a positive note, it'll be better than arrangements in Iraq, where more than 20 men shared one room - each having a living space of about 4 foot by 8 foot. Of all the challenges though, Lyon says the hardest will be being away from his family. But he says he has a job to do, and he's committed to doing it. It's that same dedication that Baldwin EMC's Chief Executive Officer Bucky Jakins says makes Lyon a good employee. "John is a selfless person, willing to do whatever it takes to get the job done," Jakins says. "He's a hero, and I'm proud he's a part of the Baldwin EMC family." That family, like Lyon's own, will be waiting and praying for his safe return. A
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4/19/13 9:19 AM