Oklahoma Lineworkers Volunteer for Light Up Navajo
Displaying the cooperative spirit, 10 lineworkers representing five electric cooperatives in Oklahoma returned from the Navajo Nation, where they worked for seven days bringing first-time access to electricity to Navajo families. Lineworkers worked in the district of Shiprock, New Mexico, alongside the Navajo Tribal Utility Authority (NTUA) electric crews to build power lines in a high desert-like region.
“We got to turn on power for some families for the first time. The smiles on the kids’ faces and elderly ladies … that’s not something you forget. There is nothing quite like providing electricity to someone for the very first time,” said Reid Trout, lineman volunteer with Cimarron Electric Cooperative based in Kingfisher, Oklahoma.
The Light Up Navajo project began in 2019 as an initiative of NTUA and the American Public Power Association (APPA). Since then, the program has expanded and electric cooperatives from various states have joined in this humanitarian initiative. To date, the project has brought power to 900-plus homes in Navajo Nation where more than 10,000 of the 56,000 homes do not have electricity.
“It is a privilege for Oklahoma’s electric cooperatives to send volunteers to power families in the Navajo Nation,” said Nicki Fuller, General Manager/CEO of the Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives and former APPA board member. “Every home and business in our country should have power, which brings forth quality of life. We are honored to help in this worthwhile mission.”
The following lineworkers were the first ones from Oklahoma’s electric cooperatives participating in this project:
- Jayson Cross, Central Rural Electric Cooperative, Stillwater-OK
- Kyle Williams, Central Rural Electric Cooperative, Stillwater-OK
- Zac Smith, Cimarron Electric Cooperative, Kingfisher-OK
- Jack Taylor, Cimarron Electric Cooperative, Kingfisher-OK
- Reid Trout, Cimarron Electric Cooperative, Kingfisher-OK
- Chase Blackburn, CKenergy Electric Cooperative, Binger-OK
- Tanner Ingram, CKenergy Electric Cooperative, Binger-OK
- Leith Burkhalter, Southeastern Electric Cooperative, Durant-OK
- Kelby Boyd, Southwest Rural Electric Association, Tipton-OK
- Stetson Ryan, Southwest Rural Electric Association, Tipton-OK
The Navajo Nation extends into the states of Utah, Arizona and New Mexico covering more than 27,000 square miles. NTUA serves on average about five customers per mile, but the Light Up Navajo homes are among the hardest to reach as families are living in isolated homesteads for generations.
“We are incredibly grateful for co-op volunteers who traveling from Oklahoma and all parts of the country to be a part of this initiative that is life-changing for families and the volunteers who help to improve the standard of life,” said Deenise Becenti, NTUA government and public affairs manager. “It’s power for today, tomorrow and the day after that. It’s for generations forward.”
