Jerry's colleagues in System Operations recognized his 50 years of service in the electric utility industry earlier this month. From left: Ashton Draper, Grid Operations Support supervisor; Jerry, and Michael Houglum, VP Transmission Operations.

How did you get here, Jerry Ward?

Rarely is our career path a straight line. This month, Jerry Ward is is celebrating 50 years in the electric utility industry, including 15 years with Tri-State and 35 years at El Paso Electric. 

What was your first job (or an early job)?

I began in the electric utility field as a meter reader, back when they had them. The company I started with thought everyone should start at that job.

What did you take away from that experience that you use today?

Working with customers that really don’t like or want to be agreeable with you. This experience made me build some customer skills that I still utilize.

What do you do at Tri-State?

Coordinate outages for our members, field employees and neighboring utilities, as well as informational outages that are not ours but may impact the system.

What did you focus on in trade school? Are you working in that field?

Early on I attended a trade school in Arizona for auto mechanics, but then I took a turn when that didn’t work as well as I thought it could have. May have been location related but thought I needed a different direction.

What is a mistake you made that turned out to be a learning experience?

As a dispatcher, early on, I found that the fast pace can drive your work to a point where mistakes happen. At one point I thought I may have injured a crew due to a misstep. Reality is we have a physical open for crews to protect them from my mistakes. The lesson was to slow down the pace to make sure you are always completing steps safely and correctly.

Do you have, or have you had a mentor?

There are so many mentors in this industry, knowledgeable people that I have looked up to, that made me want to do better.

What is a career achievement you’re most proud of?

The thing I am most proud of is the team of professionals I work with every day. Without this team we have, we couldn’t do the work that we accomplish daily. We all have a part to play and back each other up at all stages.

What are you looking forward to learning or doing in your career?

I have said that if you are not continually learning in this business then you are not doing anything. I’m still learning just about every day.

What professional groups do you belong to and what do you gain from them?

I have been a member of APDA, American Power Dispatchers Association.

Do you have family or other connections to the electric industry?

Not yet, but my son is currently studying to take his NERC test. He wants to get into this business, hopefully at Tri-State.