Employee milestones worth noting
Capital Electric Cooperative is fortunate to employ dedicated professionals who do their best each day to keep the co-op running efficiently for you, its members. Every one of those professionals plays an important role at the co-op. They fix outages, dispatch line crews, read meters, plan for expansion of service lines, pay bills, answer phones and provide quality service to members.
The co-op recently honored three longtime employees for reaching milestone anniversaries. Mike Schneider was recognized for 30 years; Lars Nygren reached 25 years; and Doug Mork completed his 20th year with the cooperative. We thank these three and all of our employees for their dedication to the privilege of keeping the lights on for our members.
MIKE SCHNEIDER, WAREHOUSEMAN
Mike Schneider’s ability to maintain an orderly warehouse,
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properly stocked and maintain positive relationships with vendors would be an easy thing to take for granted. For 30 years, Capital Electric has been able to take it for granted because of the high level of care Mike takes while doing his job.
“When ordering supplies, I think about the members and how they would like me to spend their money. I treat the transaction as if it were my own purchase, concentrating on getting the best quality products for the best price,” he says.
Mike’s experience has become valuable to the cooperative as he keeps things running smoothly for the lineworkers. He sees himself as a coordinator, staying on top of the computerized inventory system which he had to learn in recent years. This keeps the lineworkers moving efficiently as inventory is always easy to find and supplies are replenished.
Things have changed a lot since he started in 1978, but the people are still his favorite part of the job. Mike prides himself on doing his best to get along with everyone, from coworkers to vendors.
“Having a positive attitude is important to me and I want everyone to know they can count on that from me on a daily basis,” Mike says. He has made a lot of friends in the vendors and the consumers he has worked with over the years.
At his place southeast of Bismarck, Mike spends a lot of time outside. In the summer, he’s working in the yard, either on his own trees or helping friends with his tree expertise. When hunting season arrives, Mike can be found tracking down deer and pheasants.
“I believe in the proliferation of wildlife so I do my part to help them get through the winter, especially this winter. The rabbits get so tame they’ll come right up to me when I’m spreading out the grain,” he says. He also loves to fish, canoe and backpack. If it can be done outdoors, Mike will be doing it.
Mike and his wife, Kim, have been married for 35 years in February. They have two children, Jennifer and David. According to Mike, “Family will always be ‘number one’ for me.” Mike has dedicated the past 30 years to his family, his friends and to the job we all appreciate him doing for Capital Electric.
LARS NYGREN, GENERAL MANAGER
In 1983, Lars Nygren started his 25 years with Capital Electric Cooperative.
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He was hired as the cooperative manager after managing Verendrye Electric’s Minot office for eight years. Working for the co-op continues to be a great experience for Lars.
“It’s the people that I enjoy the most. We have a great staff that knows how to work as a team,” he says.
As Lars remembers his first few years with the cooperative, he says, “When I came on board, we were in the final years of a power supply building period. In response to increasing generation costs, the general service rate increased through 1985. It wasn’t until 2008 when the general rate increased again. We’re heading back into the power supply building mode again.”
During the past 25 years, Lars has served in more capacities than just co-op manager. He is currently the chairman of both the NRECA (National Rural Electric Cooperative Association) member and public relations standing committee and the Mid-West Electric Consumers Association. He also serves on the Rural Development Finance Corporation’s board. All of these organizations serve co-ops and their members. He also serves on the board of RESCO, a regional co-op supply group.
Some of the most daunting challenges of his career at Capital Electric have been related to service area and disputes with Montana-Dakota Utilities. In recent years, the culmination of this ongoing battle resulted in two lawsuits being decided by the N.D. Supreme Court and other complaints being filed and heard by the Public Service Commission.
Working with the Capital Electric board of directors continues to be a pleasure for Lars. “We were fortunate to have a lot of ‘institutional memory’ on the board with members like Rusty Lasher and Bernard Falkenstein. It was important for me to learn what they knew about the co-op’s history in order to manage effectively,” he says.
The co-op has experienced significant growth during Lars’ tenure as manager. In 1983, there were 5,900 meters served, compared to 14,732 today. During that time, the office grew from27 full-time employees to 34, plus a few part-time people. According to Lars, “We added a lot of infrastructure to keep up with the growth. We’ve done a great job of serving the members during that time.”
Lars and his wife, Helen, have been married for 32 years. He has two children, Andrew and Maren, and he’s a proud grandpa to Monica and Malayna. During his free time, Lars enjoys fishing, golfing and traveling. Going to the lake with the Bruce Carlson (general manager of Verendrye Electric) and Cedric Jacobson (general manager of North Central Electric) families has been a tradition for years. It just goes to show how important the co-op relationships are to Lars. They really are “just like family.”
DOUG MORK, MANAGER OF MEMBER SERVICES
When Doug Mork came to work for Capital Electric Cooperative, he already
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had a lot of experience in designing transmission lines and substations. A 1973 graduate of North Dakota State University, Doug worked as a construction engineer for Basin Electric for 2.5 years and subsequently for HDR as a civil engineer for 13more years. This experience equipped him with the perfect background for his position at the cooperative.
As the member services manager, Doug has spent the last 20 years working with co-op members as they install geothermal heating and cooling, electric heat and other electric services.
“The membership has more than doubled since I started at Capital Electric, which means the number of member projects, phone calls and questions had increased by that same amount,” Doug says. “Taking care of the customer was my focus at HDR, so it was an easy transition to make sure our members are given that same level of attention and service.” Doug appreciates having quality local contractors to work with on these projects.
Doug is also heavily involved in the process of designing Capital Electric’s infrastructure, including substations, transmission and distribution system. His experience in dealing with the Rural Utilities Service (RUS) guidelines relating to utility construction is substantial. He works closely with Ron Lipp, engineering and operations manager, in the design process.
“Working for the cooperative is like being part of a family,” Doug relates, and being part of a close family comes naturally for Doug. He remains active in the family farm operation north of Mandan with his parents and older brother. When he’s not farming, his other hobbies include riding his Harley on motorcycle trips with friends and coworkers to places like the Oshkosh, Wis., Air Show or Seattle, Wash. He also loves to tackle woodworking projects at home in his shop.
Doug’s family includes his wife of 34 years, Joanie, and four grown children, Erik, Jennie, Jeana and Julie. The Mork family has a long history with North Dakota State University, as everyone in the family received their degree from the Fargo school. Even Doug’s mother, Grace, is an NDSU alumfrom1944. During the Bison football season, Doug and Joanie support the team by attending every home game.