Taps & Jets, Volume 92, No. 2

TAPS & JETS Vol. 92 No. 2

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

A publication for current and retired employees of the Metropolitan Utilities District

pg. 2 pg. 3 pg. 5 pg. 6

Board Dedicates New Headquarters Chemical Building Receives Award Employees, Customers Impacted by Storm Internal Career Expo Scheduled

pg. 7 pg. 7 pg. 8 pg. 10

Pandemic Update Temporary Facility Added New iHydrant Technology Installed Langel Joins District as COO

Members of the M.U.D. Board of Directors and President Mark Doyle honor the legacy of Tom Dowd, dedicating the new Headquarters to our customer-owners in his memory. Pictured with the plaque, are, from left: Tom Dowd’s children and wife, Sally; Director Tanya Cook; Vice Chair Jack Frost; Directors Gwen Howard and Tim Cavanaugh; Board Chair Mike McGowan and President Mark Doyle.

ON THE COVER:

BOARD DEDICATES NEW HEADQUARTERS AS PROJECT OFFICIALLY COMPLETED The District’s new Headquarters at 7350 World Communications Drive was officially dedicated during a plaque ceremony attended by the M.U.D. Board of Directors, senior management team and special guests.

Following the July 7 board meeting, President Mark Doyle and Board Chair Mike McGowan gave remarks and recognized the project team and partners involved in updating the facility.

TAPS & JETS VOL. 92 | No. 2 Summer 2021

They also welcomed family members of Tom Dowd, a former board director who served 40 years on the board and passed away in 2019. The Headquarters is dedicated to the District’s customer-owners in special memory of Tom. Project leaders Jon Zellars, vice president, Procurement and Enterprise Services, and Melissa Polito, director, Water Production and Pumping, were

recognized for completing the project on schedule and within budget. Mark also acknowledged contractors Holland Basham Architects and MCL Construction.

“Thank you to everyone who played a part in this project, from the planning to the finishing touches,” Mark said. “Our new Headquarters is yet another example of an investment in infrastructure that will serve the District and its employees for many years to come.”

Mike spoke about the longterm benefits of the facility.

“It certainly creates an excellent working environment and provides the tools and structure for our employees to excel and fully dedicate themselves to their job and the owner ratepayers,” he said. “We have truly set the stage to ensure safe and reliable water and natural gas service well into the future.”

TAPS & JETS is published quarterly for current and retired employees to inform them about the activities and accomplishments of the District’s employees. Your comments are welcome.

Please send comments and suggestions to: TAPS & JETS, Metropolitan Utilities District, 7350 World Communications Dr., Omaha, NE 68122 OR Jessica Heidebrecht: jessica_heidebrecht@mudnebr.com | 402.504.7204.

Board of Directors: Chair Mike McGowan, Vice Chair Jack Frost, Jim Begley, Tim Cavanaugh, Tanya Cook, David Friend and Gwen Howard.

President: Mark Doyle |

Produced and published by Corporate Communications

Facebook: /mudomahane | Twitter: @mudomahane | Instagram: @mudwaterontap

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The Florence Water Treatment Plant is the oldest and largest water treatment facility in the District’s system. Its chemical building served the plant for more than 60 years but needed upgrades and improvements to reduce operations and maintenance requirements, optimize laboratory and administrative space, enhance the building’s aesthetics and improve reliability.

The District sought a cleaner, more automated fill system for the large steel bins that store chemicals. The project included new, more efficient and operator-friendly feed systems for the water treatment chemicals.

FLORENCE CHEMICAL BUILDING PROJECT RECEIVES NATIONAL AWARD The Florence Water Treatment Plant Chemical Building rehabilitation project recently received national recognition from the American Council of Engineering Companies (ACEC).

Project design partner HDR Inc. submitted the entry for consideration in the ACEC 2021 Engineering Excellence

Awards competition—the “Academy Awards of the engineering industry.”

The project was selected for a National Recognition Award, which is a prestigious distinction honoring projects which achieved exceptional engineering excellence. The District and its partners were recognized during a June 17 gala awards program.

The team also made significant improvements to the building’s energy efficiency, including to the ventilation system, highefficiency heating system, highefficiency lighting and elevator.

One of the team’s biggest challenges was meeting building codes. The singular, three-story building only had one stair tower and one service elevator.

Because of the building layout and differing foundation depths, there was only one location for an additional stair tower while satisfying egress requirements.

Challenged by utilities, process lines, an access road and an adjacent shallow foundation, the project team installed an earth retention system to maintain structural stability of the adjacent foundation and protect utilities.

After more than 60 years of service, the chemical building is new again.

The restored facility features modern feed equipment, reduces operations and maintenance requirements, improves the safety of water treatment operators and expands laboratory and administrative space.

(Information courtesy of HDR and edited for length.)

TAPS & JETS | VOL. 92, NO. 2 | SUMMER 2021

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OLYMPIC DREAMS FULFILLED The road to Tokyo went right through Omaha, and while the spotlight was squarely on the athletes, they could not compete without the water. It was the fourth time the City of Omaha has hosted the U.S. Olympic Swim Trials and the high-quality water provided

by M.U.D. was center stage.

Over a span of two weeks in June, athletes swam lap after lap inside the CHI Health Center Omaha, often under the lights of a primetime TV audience. To make it all happen, two massive 50-meter pools were built inside the arena and convention center.

The competition pool in the main venue holding just over a million gallons of M.U.D. water and a second warm-up pool set up in halls A & B filled with close to 1.3 million gallons. That is more than 2.5 million gallons of water when you look at both pools, plumbing and the surge tanks that were brought in to make it all run.

John Ireland, director of technical services for Myrtha Pools USA, 4

says the hydrant pressure his crews got in Omaha was second to none. He said, “We had great flow from the hydrants and the water is very, very clear coming in. It makes it a pretty easy job to get the pools ready to swim.”

The massive setup that was delayed by the COVID-19 pandemic had been in the works since mid-2019. John said overall it is an event that everyone should be proud of.

“It took the work of 40 or so engineering and architectural professionals to design, and the actual build took 80 technicians from six different companies, plus a lot of union help from the great city of Omaha,” he said.

Once built, it took close to 10 hours to fill the main competition pool. From there the water was treated again and ready to help shape international sports history.

M.U.D. was recognized at a May 19 luncheon by the National Safety Council of Nebraska with the “Nebraska Safest Company, with Distinction” award. The award recognizes companies with safety records that are 50% better than the industry national average. The District has received the award 11 times. Pictured are, from left: Safety Specialists Tammie Hineline, Peter Kiscoan and Daniel Murphy; and Safety Manager Shane Docken.

EMPLOYEES, CUSTOMERS IMPACTED BY JULY 9 STORM As storms battered Omaha July 9, a record wind speed of 96 mph was clocked at Eppley Airfield. Winds of that magnitude are similar to those of a category 2 hurricane. Trees fell throughout the city and thousands of people experienced electrical outages—with some outages lasting days before restoration.

District employees worked safely and tirelessly through the storm and its aftermath. Field Service technicians saw a record number of gas meters pulled away from homes due to downed trees, Construction crews repaired water main breaks in extreme conditions and Claims representatives were in the field addressing customer concerns. Fallen trees and power outages also impacted our facilities.

As a result of the power outages experienced, the District issued a two-week moratorium on service disconnections to allow customers time to recover from the storms.

President Mark Doyle commended employees for their perseverance through the storm and for ensuring a continued commitment and dedication to providing life-essential services to the community.

TAPS & JETS | VOL. 92, NO. 2 | SUMMER 2021

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M.U.D. INTERNAL CAREER EXPO M.U.D.’s first Internal Career Expo has been created. Senior management and the Human Resources team understand the value our employee base brings and want to ensure everyone has the tools, education and available resources to tap their potential and use their talents and skills to bring M.U.D. into the future.

TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 21, 2021

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 23, 2021

HEADQUARTERS LUNCHROOM | 11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

CONSTRUCTION CENTER LUNCHROOM | 7 – 10 a.m.

• Accounting • Corporate Communications & Customer Success • Customer Accounting • Customer Service • Engineering Design • Finance • Information Technology • Infrastructure Integrity • Plant & Field Engineering

• Construction • Dispatch • Field Services • Gas Operations • Maintenance • Meter Services • Safety & Security • Systems Control • Transportation • Utility Locating • Water Operations

“Employees should use this event to explore the different resources offered by M.U.D. that could propel themselves into other roles at the District. M.U.D. offers tuition assistance and self-development benefits, M.U.D. University and other opportunities for our employees to continue learning,” said Bonnie Savine, vice president, Human Resources.

“During the Career Expo we want employees to engage in conversations with division representatives to understand more about career paths, job families and to take away more knowledge of what we offer as an employer and how employees can update their skills and experience to be prepared when any career opportunity presents itself.”

Written by Maggie King, summer employee, Law Department 6

PANDEMIC UPDATE: DISTRICT IN PHASE 2 OF RE-ENTRY PLAN SINCE JULY 1 As trends continued to improve for the COVID-19 pandemic, the District entered the second phase of its re-entry plan July 1.

During Phase 2, which runs for a minimum of eight weeks, all District facilities moved up to 50% occupancy, allowing for a conservative approach on returning employees to the office.

The District’s Face Mask Policy (updated May 28) states that fully vaccinated employees have the option to wear face masks indoors and outdoors, and those not fully vaccinated should adhere to the Center for Disease Control’s “Choosing Safer Activities” GUIDE. Employees are encouraged to continue social distancing,

use good hand hygiene and disinfect work areas and work tools/equipment. Employees are still expected to report COVID-19 exposures and symptoms to Danette Lodes in Human Resources.

Other highlights include: • Single occupancy rule for District vehicles expired.

Multiple occupants are allowed, and employees should comply with the mask policy based on their vaccination status.

• Occupancy limits are lifted in common spaces, including conference rooms, lunchrooms and crew shacks. Employees may gather in groups, however employees should comply with the mask policy based on their vaccination status.

• Food/refreshments at employee gatherings for special occasions, such as retirement coffees or holiday celebrations, are limited to one or two items, such as a cake or other dessert, and will be served by one person wearing gloves. Larger food options such as potlucks or food days are not allowed.

• Business-related travel with authorization will be allowed.

Employee Recognition and Public Events Canceled The annual employee picnic and the service honoree dinner are canceled for a second year due to the pandemic.

During the May 11 Water Cooler Chat, President Mark Doyle said the decisions were made with employee safety top of mind.

“Plans are underway to thank and recognize employees in different ways and we look forward to the time when inperson events can resume,” he said. More information on employee recognition will be shared in the coming months.

In addition, the District’s Employee Speakers Bureau will continue to suspend public outreach activities until further notice. The mobile hydration station, hydrant parties and other On Tap! events are suspended.

The emergency water truck will be provided at events on a caseby-case basis for public safety, including the August 28 concert and fireworks in Memorial Park.

DISTRICT ADDS TEMPORARY FACILITY AMID SAFETY CONCERNS With the goal of improving business continuity and addressing safety concerns at the Construction Center, the District has added a temporary facility. During the April board meeting, directors approved a letter of intent for the District to lease a building at 14242 C Circle.

Settling issues as a result of construction activities associated with an adjacent third-party construction site forced TAPS & JETS | VOL. 92, NO. 2 | SUMMER 2021

management to explore options for keeping employees safe while continuing to ensure we meet our mission. A portion of the northwest section of the Construction Center was closed and various workgroups were temporarily relocated.

With the leased property, those work groups will be moved to the location just southeast of 144th & Industrial Rd. Employees identified to move will come from the following

areas: Field Service welding, Construction welding and areas under the Maintenance department including the machine shop, blacksmith shop, carpentry and electricians.

In addition to relocation of employees, the terms of the agreement also allow for parking of smaller fleet vehicles. The agreement is valid for three years with two one-year optional extensions. Relocation will occur over the coming months.

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IHYDRANT TECHNOLOGY ALLOWS FOR REAL-TIME DATA They are billed as the “hydrant of the 21st century.” Now so-called iHydrants are making their way into the Metropolitan Utilities District system. The goal is to use this new technology to give year-round, real-time pressure data wherever they are installed.

The iHydrant product is produced

by Clow and, to the average person, is almost undetectable.

Driving by you would never realize the normal pieces inside the hydrant have been

removed and replaced with a series of sensors. “The iHydrant unit has the temperature and pressure sensors down in the lower valve plate, so all the sensors are down below frost grade and data is transmitted through a wire,” said Jared Svagera, infrastructure engineer, Infrastructure Integrity. Jared is working with Clow on the initial project. “This system transmits the pressure and temperature data to the cloud through a

2021 BENEFITS FAIR

cellular antenna in the housing at the top of the hydrant.”

of prescribed thresholds that we’ve established,” Jared said.

Jared said before this system, M.U.D. used a different hydrant system but there were some drawbacks. Crews were limited to only summer installation, and the system required the technician to retrieve the device and then download the data for analysis. “The new system pushes data to an online portal and sends alerts when pressures are out

So far just a handful of iHydrant units have been installed at various points across the District, but there are plans to add more in the future. Engineers say that adding more could give an even better picture of events that could impact pipes and present potential problems, like service outages and unplanned maintenance.

Tuesday, October 26 | 7:30 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Firefighters’ Union Hall (60th & Grover) 8

More details will be shared

by Human Resources as they become available.

KUDOS

Customers recently wrote or called to praise the work performed by these employees.

Rocky Barraza

Jacob Benak Construction

Field Services

Lynn Crawley

John DeSantiago

Tony Dillow

Mike Hall

Jerry Johnson

Eddie Latoza Construction

Field Services

Shawn McMahon

Bryan McKulsky

Kevin McWilliams

Kyle Palmesano Construction

Field Services

Jason Querry

Joey Rachwalik

Forrest Roos

Chris Simpson

Marques Vaughn

Field Services

Customer Service

Field Services

Water Distribution

Construction

Field Services

Transportation

Construction

Construction

TAPS & JETS | VOL. 92, NO. 2 | SUMMER 2021

Keith Beyer

Construction

Construction

Construction

Doug Brennan

Steve Bridwell

Tim Burk

Nick Crampton

Field Services

Water Distribution

Construction

Wanda Fry

Dave Graham

Jack Griffey Construction

Customer Accounting

Blaine Lazio

Jerry Markham

Jamie Marotta

Luke Matulka

Alex Perea

Brandon Pokorski

Joshua Peacher

Customer Accounting

Construction

Field Services

Field Services

Customer Service

Field Services

Field Services

Construction

Debi Haley

Field Services

Construction

Tom Zach

Transportation

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NEW EMPLOYEES GINA LANGEL JOINS DISTRICT AS CHIEF OPERATIONS OFFICER M.U.D.’s Board of Directors approved the hire of Gina Langel as senior vice president, Chief Operations Officer, at its July 7 meeting. She succeeds Dave DeBoer, who retired in March.

Gina Langel

President’s Office

Senior Vice President, Chief Operations Officer

Gina is a registered professional engineer with more than 30 years of experience in natural gas, water and electric utilities. She previously worked for M.U.D. for nearly 15 years as an engineer and senior utilization engineer. She also spent time as

the assistant superintendent, Gas Production. Since 2005, Gina has worked for Omaha Public Power District in a variety of roles including engineering and leadership positions focused on fossil fuels, energy delivery and continuous improvement.

development professional and measurement and verification professional. Gina is a graduate of Leadership Sarpy and the ICAN Defining Leadership for Women program. She won OPPD’s Women of Achievement Award in 2014.

She earned a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Nebraska-Omaha and a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Gina is a certified energy manager, sustainable

Gina and her husband, Brian, have four children. She enjoys volunteering at her church, playing sand volleyball, watching her kids play sports and walking her dog.

Hello, Neighbor! M.U.D. is excited to be on Nextdoor!

Watch for project updates, service announcements and the news that matters most to you and your neighborhood. Click HERE to learn more.

BEST CARE EMPLOYEE ASSISTANCE PROGRAM (EAP) Employees are eligible for multiple free services through EAP, including: • Free and confidential counseling • Training classes • Online webinars To schedule a counseling session for you or an eligible family member, call 402.354.8000.

402.354.8000

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bestcareeap.org

Training, webinars or other support programs are available online.

Visit bestcareeap.org/member-login and enter the following login information: • Member ID: bcMUDe • Password: MUD

Viridiana Armendariz

Zach Aurand

Gillian Blackson

Kathryn Brousseau

Customer Service Clerk I

Pipe Layer Trainee

Customer Service Clerk I

Customer Service

Cole Groff

Construction

Construction

Keith Hale

Susan Caldwell

Colton Carey

Customer Service Clerk I

Customer Service Clerk I

Apprentice Mechanic

Noah Hawkins

David Johnson

Joshua Jones

Customer Service

Customer Service

Pipe Layer Trainee

Construction

Pipe Layer Trainee

Plant Engineering Engineer I

Pipe Layer Trainee

Stuart Longmeyer

Joshua Loyd

Nico Mannino

Tyler Martin

Pipe Layer Trainee

Pipe Layer Trainee

Pipe Layer Trainee

Pipe Layer Trainee

Josiah Pesek

Chase Porter

Dennis Schweikart

Pipe Layer Trainee

Pipe Layer Trainee

Engineer I

Construction

Construction

Construction

Construction

TAPS & JETS | VOL. 92, NO. 2 | SUMMER 2021

Construction

Engineering Design

Construction

Construction

Customer Service

Dylan Fichtner

Transportation

Engineering Design

Tyler Lathrop

Christopher Lewis

Pipe Layer Trainee

Water Plant Maintenance Mechanic

Customer Service Clerk I

Brian Miner

Joseph Obal

Construction

Customer Service

Sam Olbrey

Water Plant Engineer

Construction

Pipe Layer Trainee

Engineering Design

Austin Swartzendruber

Beth Venteicher

Taylor Woodson

Michael Zoucha

Pipe Layer Trainee

Senior Financial Analyst

Pipe Layer Trainee

Pipe Layer Trainee

Construction

Platte West Plant

Platte West Plant

Engineer I

Accounting

Construction

Engineer I

Construction

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PROMOTIONS & TRANSFERS KOENIG NAMED VICE PRESIDENT, WATER OPERATIONS

Mike Koenig

Water Operations Vice President, Water Operations

The board of directors promoted Mike Koenig to vice president, Water Operations, at the May 5 board meeting. He succeeds Jim Shields, who retired last year.

He was promoted to engineer I in 2001, design engineer in 2002, design engineering-major projects in 2007 and senior design engineer-major projects, Water Pumping, in 2009.

In 2017, Mike was named director, Water Production and Pumping.

Most recently serving as director, Water Production and Pumping, Mike has more than 24 years of service with the District. He was hired in 1997 as an engineer II, Plant Engineering.

Mike earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. He has professional engineer and Grade I Water Operator licenses.

Mike has served on the Nebraska

Jacob Benak

Troy Bostwick

Machine Operator I

Apprentice Customer Service Technician

Marc Davis

Thomas Dillon

Pipe Layer

Construction

Jerod Cleveland

Utility Locator

Kyle Crum

Machine Operator I

Customer Account Clerk IV

Justin Edwards

Richard Erlandson

Nick Foreman

Chad Haffke

Pipe Layer Welder

Water Maintenance Trainee

Chemical Equipment Mechanic I

Pipe Layer

Apprentice Customer Service Technician

Trent Hastings

Kevin Hensel

Oliver Hernandez

Tiffany Hudson

Mike Jacobson

Andrew Johnson

Pipe Layer

Machine Operator I

Machine Operator I

Administrative Clerk IV

Senior Customer Service Technician

Machine Operator I

Construction

Construction

Water Distribution

Construction

Construction

Ebony Craine

Construction

Construction

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Rob Brown

Safety & Security

Mike and his wife, Sarah, have been married for 23 years and have six children. He enjoys working and playing at the Koenig family farm, landscaping and helping with their children’s activities.

Customer Accounting

Construction

Field Services

Section American Water Works Association (NSAWWA) scholarship committee since 2016 and the NSAWWA board as a trustee since 2018.

Platte West Plant

Stores

Construction

Field Services

Utility Worker

Field Services

Construction

John Davis

Field Services

Apprentice Customer Service Technician

Cleo Harris

Water Pumping

Water Plant Engineer

Kevin Jones

Plant Engineering Senior Engineering Technician

Ronald Kates

Drake Kubat

Patrick Lustgraaf

Zachary Markham

Colton Meador

Brian Paskach

Josh Peacher

Water Maintenance Trainee

Pipe Layer Trainee

Apprentice Mechanic

Pipe Layer Welder

Pipe Layer Trainee

Large Boring Machine Operator

Machine Operator I

Melissa Polito

Arturo Rocha

Bill Sargent

Marcus Schnack

Dayton Seidenglanz

Thomas Sneed

Senior Plant Engineer

Water Plant Engineer

Utility Worker

Brenda SkomedalKastens

Water Distribution

Water Production & Pumping

Director, Water Production & Pumping

William Stoffel Construction

Pipe Layer Welder

Justin Weber Construction

Machine Operator I

Construction

Construction

Machine Operator I

Noree Sy

Transportation

Plant Engineering

Jacob Thomas

Plant Engineering

Water Distribution

Travis West

Jakeb Whitbeck

General Maintenance Mechanic

Machine Operator I

Senior Engineering Technician–Operations

Water Distribution

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Crew Leader

Construction

Construction

Platte West Plant

Construction

Construction

Construction

Construction

Construction

Purchasing

Pipe Layer Welder

Buyer

Ben Ulrich

Tyler Vaca-Keller

Trent Volenec

Tammy Watkins

Apprentice Customer Service Tehnician

Machine Operator I

Pipe Layer

Water Plant Operator

Jerry Zadina

Lana Zhuromskaya

Stores Clerk IV

Senior Engineering Technician–Design

Field Services

Transportation

Construction

Construction

Water Pumping

Engineering Design

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RETIREMENTS

MIKE ARIZA

Mike Ariza, gas infrastructure inspector/fitter, Field Services, plans to retire August 25 with 29 years of service. Mike joined the District in 1992 as a pipe layer trainee, Construction. He was promoted to customer service technician trainee, Field Services, in 1993. Mike advanced to apprentice customer service technician in 1995, customer service technician in 1997 and was named customer service technicianfitter in 2008. He was promoted to gas infrastructure inspector/fitter in 2014.

NICHOLAS CHURCHICH

Susie Barrett, cashier II, Customer Service, plans to retire September 8 with 20 years of service. Susie joined the District in 2001 as a cashier I and was promoted to cashier II in 2002.

SUSIE BARRETT

FRANK COLABELLO Robert Carr, industrial gas meter mechanic, Meter Services, retired June 30 with 30 years of service. Robert joined the District in 1990 as stores clerk II, Stores. He was named apprentice meter mechanic, Meter Services, in 1991. Robert was promoted to meter mechanic in 1993 and to industrial gas meter mechanic in 1999.

ROBERT CARR

TIBERIO CHAVEZ

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KEN FRANKLIN Tiberio Chavez, crew leader, Construction, retired May 15 with 19 years of service. Tiberio joined the District in 2002 as an auto service person, Transportation. He was promoted to pipe layer trainee, Construction in 2003.

Tiberio advanced to pipe layer in 2005 and to welder that same year. He was named pipe layer in 2006 and advanced to machine operator in 2008. Tiberio was promoted to utility worker in 2010 and crew leader in 2018.

Nicholas Churchich, customer service technician, Field Services, retired May 1 with 31 years of service. Nicholas joined the District in 1990 as a pipe layer trainee, Construction.

He was promoted to pipe layer in 1992. In 1994, Nicholas was named customer service technician trainee, Field Services. He advanced to apprentice customer service technician in 1996 and to customer service technician in 1998.

Frank Colabello, gas leak assistant, Gas Distribution, retired July 16 with 21 years of service. Frank joined the District in 1999 as a meter reader, Meter Services. He was promoted to water maintenance trainee, Water Distribution, in 2000. In 2001, he was named meter reader, Meter Services. He advanced to meter reader-car route in 2007 and became meter reader-reread in 2009. In 2019, Frank was promoted to gas leak assistant, Gas Distribution.

Ken Franklin, senior customer service technician, Field Services, retired June 2 with 28 years of service. Ken joined the District in 1993 as a meter reader, Meter Services.

He was named water maintenance trainee, Water Distribution, in 1999 and advanced to water maintenance worker in 2001. Ken became a customer service technician trainee later that year and was promoted to apprentice customer service technician in 2002, customer service technician in 2004 and senior customer service technician in 2012.

Jack Griffey, machine operator, Construction, plans to retire August 11 with 25 years of service.

Jack joined the District in 1995 as a pipe layer trainee. He advanced to pipe layer in 1997 and was promoted to pipe layer-welder in 2000, utility worker in 2001 and crew leader in 2012.

Jack was named machine operator in 2019.

JACK GRIFFEY

Joe Gunia, machine operator, Construction, retired July 29 with 23 years of service. Joe joined the District in 1997 as a pipe layer trainee. He advanced to pipe layer in 2000 and was named machine operator in 2002.

BRIAN LEAHY

JOE GUNIA

TERRY HUISMANN

Terry Huismann, senior ERP technical/functional analyst, Information Technology, plans to retire October 1 with a combined 30 years of service.

Terry joined the District in 1982 as a programmer I, advancing to systems programmer in 1984 and lead programmer/analyst in 1989. He was named project leader/analyst in 1995 and served in that role until 1997. Terry rejoined the District in 2005 as a business analyst II. He was promoted to senior business analyst in 2013 and named senior ERP technical/functional analyst in 2015.

Terry also worked for Nebraska Public Power District, National Cash Register and First Data Resources. He attended the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

In retirement, Terry plans to travel and fix up his home. He and his wife, Laurie, have a son, two daughters and six grandchildren.

AL KURZ

Al Kurz, customer service technician-fitter, Field Services, retired June 3 with 29 years of service.

Al joined the District in 1992 as an auto service person, Transportation. He was promoted to mechanical service helper, Field Services, in 1998. Al was named customer service technician trainee in 1999 and advanced to apprentice customer service technician in 2000, customer service technician in 2002 and was named customer service technician-fitter in 2008.

TAPS & JETS | VOL. 92, NO. 2 | SUMMER 2021

KAREN MERRILL

GAYLE SCHNATZ

Brian Leahy, chemical equipment mechanic I, Platte West Plant, plans to retire August 7 with 36 years of service. Brian joined the District in 1985 as an auto service person, Transportation. He was promoted to auto mechanic III in 1987 and named apprentice mechanic in 1990. Brian became a customer service technician trainee, Field Services, in 1990 and advanced to apprentice customer service technician in 1992, customer service technician in 1994 and night senior customer service technician in 1999. In 2000, he was named senior customer service technician.

Brian was promoted to builder representative I, Contractor Services, in 2010 and became a gas plant operator, Gas Production, in 2013. He advanced to gas plant engineer in 2015 and was named chemical equipment mechanic I, Platte West Plant, in 2018.

Karen Merrill, cashier I, Meter Services, plans to retire September 18 with 26 years of service.

Karen joined the District in 1994 as a human resources clerk, Human Resources. She was promoted to department secretary in 2001 and became human resources assistant in 2007. In 2011, Karen was named human resources clerk.

She became cashier I, Remittance Processing, in 2012 and transferred to Meter Services in 2019.

Gayle Schnatz, industrial water meter mechanic, Meter Services, retired July 16 with 27 years of service. Gayle joined the District in 1993 as a mail room clerk, Remittance Processing.

She was promoted to cashier I in 2001 and cashier II in 2008. In 2010, Gayle was promoted to apprentice meter mechanic, Meter Services.

She advanced to meter mechanic in 2011 and industrial water meter mechanic in 2018.

Prior to joining the District, Gayle worked for the City of Bellevue and A1 Direct Marketing. Gayle has two sons, a daughter and four grandchildren. In retirement, Gayle plans to spend time with her family, travel and work on remodeling projects.

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RETIREMENTS (CONTINUED) Joe Waldron, collection service representative, Field Services, plans to retire August 17 with 20 years of service. Joe joined the District in 2001 as a meter reader, Meter Services. He was promoted to collection service representative in 2007.

JOE WALDRON

Chris Yeager, engineering technician, Engineering Design, retired June 4 with 32 years of service. Chris joined the District in 1988 as a drafting technician trainee. He was promoted to drafting technician in 1991 and named computer aided drafting technician II in 1999. Chris was promoted to engineering technician in 2001.

CHRIS YEAGER

IN MEMORIAM

TIM CULLINANE

STEVE KOUBA

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Tim Cullinane, 73, died June 30. He was a field foreman, Field Services, when he retired in 2007 with 38 years of service. Tim joined the District in 1969 as a laborer and transferred to meter reader, Meter Services, that same year. He was promoted to collector in 1977 and transferred to mechanic’s helper, Field Services in 1979. Tim advanced to junior mechanic in 1980, to customer service technician in 1982, to night senior customer service technician in 1989, to senior customer service technician in 1991 and to field foreman in 2002.

Steve Kouba, 62, died July 2. He was a gas distribution crew leader, Gas Distribution, when he retired in 2018 with nearly 28 years of service. Steve joined the District in 1990 as a pipe layer trainee, Construction, advancing to pipe layer in 1992. He transferred to gas maintenance trainee, Gas Distribution, in 1997 and was promoted to gas maintenance worker in 1999 and to gas distribution crew leader in 2001.

BOB McGRANAGHAN

JOSEPH PHILLIPS

Robert E. “Bob” McGranaghan, 95, died July 21. Bob was a meter reader-reread, Meter Services, when he retired in 1987 with 36 years of service to the District. He served in the U.S. Navy during World War II. On September 2, 1945, Bob was ordered to escort a Russian general to the deck of the USS Missouri, and because of this he witnessed the signing of the treaty ending the war. Bob joined the District in 1950 as a meter reader, advancing to meter reader-special in 1956 and to meter reader-reread in 1981.

Joseph Phillips, III, 70, died April 22. He was a marketing administrator, Marketing, when he retired in 2009 with 32 years of service.

Joseph joined the District in 1977 as a special laborer and was promoted to meter reader, Meter Services. In 1979, he was promoted to offset press operator, Engineering Design, and transferred to marketing representative trainee, Marketing, in 1989. He was promoted to marketing administrator in 1990.

CONGRATULATIONS GRADUATES!

Mia Bravo Georgetown University

Al Clark

Libby Dolezal University of Nebraska at Omaha

Kenneth Duke Bellevue East High School

Liz Hugo Nebraska Methodist College

Jessica Jones University of Nebraska– Lincoln B.S., Elementary Education Patty and Jay Jones

Grant Kaluza Papillion-La Vista High School

Scott and Jennifer Kaluza

Jane Kucera Papillion-La Vista High School

Tony and Shannon Kucera

Jordan Reier Midland University

Jaden Schovanec University of Nebraska– Lincoln

Pranay Somavarapu Millard North High School

Alaina Tucker Bellevue University

B.S., Foreign Services Angelo and Kati Bravo

A.S., Radiologic Technology Cheryl and Mike Hugo

B.A., Criminal Justice Mark and Tami Reier

Amauri Clark Omaha North High School

B.S., Biological Systems Jeff and Val Schovanec

TAPS & JETS | VOL. 92, NO. 2 | SUMMER 2021

M.S., Architectural Engineering Denise Dolezal

Padmaja Chigurupati and Pradeep Somavarapu

Tyson and Stuart Robards

Megan Erspamer Duchesne Academy Cory Erspamer

Jesse Lemonds Fremont-Mills High School Stephanie and Jason Lemonds

Sydney Herren Gross Catholic High School

Lisa and John Herren

Evan Rau Gretna High School

John and Josie Lynn Rau

M.S., Human Resources Strategic Management Laraine Harris

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