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Two graduates began their co-op careers as interns; four additional staff members receive advanced technical training certifications
By Sidni Carruthers
Fifteen apprentice lineworker graduates at Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative are ready to join dozens of other journeyman lineworkers who keep electricity flowing to co-op members across its 3,800-square-mile service area.
Of the 15, two began as lineworker interns at Bluebonnet in 2019, completing a six-month training program before beginning years of apprentice training.
Another four Bluebonnet employees recently completed specialized training programs: one in advanced electric meter work, one in substation operations and two in control center operations.
Each program has different study, testing, training and work requirements. The lineworker apprentice program at Bluebonnet requires 8,000 hours of on-the-job learning, which includes 672 hours of technical instruction — typically a four-year commitment. The recent apprentice graduates have obtained U.S. Department of Labor certification as lineworkers.
“I grew up in the Brenham area with Bluebonnet folks all around. When the apprenticeship opened up and I had an opportunity to work here, I took the chance,” said Brenham-based journeyman Ryan Quinton, one of the 15 graduates. “There is always something to learn out here, but I have a good crew that makes sure we are safe and can serve Bluebonnet’s members.”
He added that the best parts of his job are being able to work outside and do something meaningful.
Many of the apprentice graduates brought knowledge and skills from previous training and other jobs.
“Before coming to work at Bluebonnet, I worked as a heavy-machine operator,” said Matt Mole, now a Bluebonnet journeyman working in Maxwell. “That time taught me the importance of safety, paying attention to what is happening around you and the importance of teamwork. The best part about working at Bluebonnet is the camaraderie that I feel with everyone.”
Including this year’s group, 139 Bluebonnet lineworker apprentices have graduated from the program since it began in 2004.
During their hundreds of hours of classroom instruction and thousands of hours of on-the-job training, apprentices focus on learning how to build overhead and underground power lines, restore power, repair and replace equipment and connect meters.
Garrett Gutierrez, field superintendent in Bastrop, is proud of the program and the quality of service it allows Bluebonnet to provide.
“Most of the guys who go through our program are from around the Bluebonnet service area and are Bluebonnet members, too,” Gutierrez said. “They take pride in their work, and that shows when they are working. It is great to see them be able to work in their communities.”
The most recent Bluebonnet apprentice graduates, in addition to Quinton and Mole, are Nick Baker, Joseph Carrillo, Caleb Clay, James Holder, Casey Jacobs, Matt Jones, Stephen LeFrance, Parker Redwine, Bubba Townsend, Garett Urban, Rhett Vellier, Bryan Woods and John Zamora. Clay and Baker, both from Bastrop, began their Bluebonnet careers as lineworker interns in 2019.
The intern program, which started in 2018, provides six months of technical instruction in line work. To advance into the apprentice program, participants must also obtain a power-pole climbing certification and a commercial driver’s license.
“I was interested in the internship program because I knew Bluebonnet was a great place to work, and there is always a need for lineworkers,” said Baker, who began the program after graduating from Bastrop High School. “Plus I already knew a few guys that were in the apprenticeship program. Having started as an intern and seeing what all it took to be a lineman at Bluebonnet really solidified that this is what I wanted to do.”
The internship program aims to hire candidates who live in the Bluebonnet region.
“We concentrate a lot on safety with these young guys,” said Nick Barta, Bluebonnet safety and training supervisor. “Throughout the cooperative we focus on safety, but it is essential that when the interns start, they understand the importance of safety and how to think about it in all of their work.”
Janca and John Russell.
Four Bluebonnet employees also received certifications for specialized work.
Anthony Garcia, a power quality and metering technician, received training in troubleshooting meter problems and formulas for reading meters. John Russell, a substation technician, completed an apprenticeship to learn skills required to maintain and repair substation equipment. Two control center operators, Bryn Janca and Hunter Adamek, completed a 10-month program and proficiency exam to receive control center operator certifications.
Learn more about Bluebonnet’s intern and apprenticeship programs at the cooperative, at bluebonnet.coop/careers.
Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative and LCRA representatives present a $10,000 grant to the Winchester Area Civic Association for improvements to Zilss Memorial Hall. The grant is part of LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program. Pictured in the front row are, from left, Ellen Brumback, association secretary; Barb Schafer, association member; Margaret D. "Meg" Voelter, LCRA board member; Byron Balke, Bluebonnet Board assistant secretary/treasurer; and Dinah Breeden, association vice chairman. Second row, from left, Margaret Atkins, association treasurer; and Michele Weth, association member. Third row, from left: Rhoda Gersch, association member; Pat Karisch, association past president; Bill Karisch, association member; Sherry Murphy, Bluebonnet Giddings-area community representative; and Liz Wallace, association member. Back row, from left, Nicolette Morrison, association president; Sherwood Gersch, association member; Kate Ramzinski, LCRA regional affairs representative; Russell Jurk, Bluebonnet Board member; Richard Schafer, association member and co-project manager of renovation; Matthew L. “Matt” Arthur, LCRA board member; and Tom Atkins, association member and co-project manager of renovation.
Zilss Memorial Hall soon will receive much-needed improvements to its nearly 100-year-old building, thanks to a $10,000 grant from Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative and the Lower Colorado River Authority.
The Community Development Partnership Program grant, along with $4,238 in matching funds from the Winchester Area Civic Association, will enable renovations to a restroom to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act, constructing a closet and adding attic insulation. The association also will rebuild an ADA-compliant ramp into the building and purchase two air conditioners and a refrigerator.
The hall, built in the 1930s as a schoolhouse, later became the cafeteria for the nearby high school. The building was converted to a facility for public use after the Winchester public school closed in 1949. Emil Zilss, one of the leading merchants and early residents of Winchester, donated the building to be used as a community meeting place.
“The building was used for weddings and receptions when it first became a community hall,” said Rhoda Gersch, a WACA member who has held various officer positions over the years. “We have heard stories from some community members who were married in the hall, and in at least one instance, the weather was so cold that they decided to just spend their wedding night there instead of braving the cold to go back home.”
After members of the community officially created the Winchester Area Civic Association in the 1960s, association members made upgrades such as installing air conditioners and renovating the kitchen. The upgrades made the hall a place for Fayette County gatherings for decades.
“We still have wedding receptions there, but now there are so many events and uses for it,” Gersch said. “We recently started a farmers market, and we regularly have birthdays, wedding showers, and baby showers, and the fire department has its annual meeting and Christmas party there.”
WACA continues to host community events at the site.
“We have an annual community party at Christmas with Santa, a Spring Fling with the Easter Bunny, and a Taste of Winchester where we ask people to bring their favorite cooked dish to share with others, as well as to enter in a contest,” Gersch said. “And we can’t forget our bimonthly Young at Heart get-togethers, which are so important in some people’s lives, when about a dozen people bring a little meal and play dominoes or cards for three hours.”
The hall also is home to classes and events for the Quilt Block Trail of Winchester, which was created by Gersch and fellow resident Margaret Atkins. All proceeds from the group’s classes and sales of quilt blocks benefit the WACA. The group’s main fundraiser is a popular domino tournament with a fried chicken dinner that helps pay some of the hall’s bills, but primarily goes to providing scholarships for Fayette County students.
“We are so pleased we can make these upgrades with the grant money to keep this hall in use for many more years, because Zilss Memorial Hall is a place where people come for fellowship with their neighbors, and it’s been that way for a long time,” Gersch said.
The community grant is one of five grants being awarded by Bluebonnet and LCRA through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund capital improvement projects in LCRA’s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves. Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative is one of LCRA’s wholesale electric customers and is a partner in the grant program.
Applications for the next round of grants will be accepted in January. More information is available here