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<br />Reflecti@ns :
<br />Employee Views of the'District in 1987
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<br />As a special feature;'of this
<br />WATERNEWS, some employees of the
<br />District consented to pro\'ide us with
<br />attitudes and feelings abodt their work. A
<br />lot of good people were l~fr out or
<br />unavailable to us in the short time allowed
<br />for this project. Most will be part of the
<br />year~long process to writejan expanded
<br />history of the NCWCD. ,
<br />We did manage to p(ck the brains of
<br />a representative group: Mlnerva Lee, Ken
<br />. Whitmore, Jim Wooldridge, Charlotte
<br />Lucius, June Moyes, Harold Bower, Gene
<br />Schleiger, John Bigham, ~oger Sinden,
<br />Jerry Wesrbiook, Marilyn Conley and
<br />Gordon Huke, all of who~ represent a
<br />total of 203 years experienCe with the
<br />District. They talked about relt jobS) what
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<br />C? &.M crews fence along canal
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<br />ies like to work for the District, changes
<br />. that have been most notable ~uring their
<br />tenure, and what they feel wifI happen in
<br />the future. We thank them for ltheir time.
<br />We also thank Charlotte, Jun., Colleen
<br />Halloran and Gloria Hannonsbn for
<br />ttan,crlbing the almost 20 hoqrs bf taped
<br />interviews.
<br />. . What is. strikinglycl.ar i;i that the
<br />District has advanced from a 1I+leepy little
<br />operation," as Minerva used to s(e:e it, to a
<br />highly sophisticated organizati4n with 58
<br />fuU~time employees. To some !pis is
<br />progreSSj to others, the good old days are
<br />long gone. But to everyone, there is still a
<br />large measure of pride associate9 with
<br />working for the NCWCD. .
<br />"Ours is a cadillac system, II s.ys Ken.
<br />l'It's well maintained, serviced ~gularlYl
<br />and far removed from the shovel..And~two~
<br />by~four methods we used to emplo,Y." Ken
<br />should know: he's been with the District
<br />since 1954 - longer than anyon~ else.
<br />Roger agrees. Compared to other water
<br />delivery systems, this one is "phenomenal."
<br />It operates like a big business, with
<br />management who knows what they are
<br />doing, and constant upgrading tha.~ puts it
<br />into a category by itself as the finest ditch
<br />system in Colorado, flWe getcompJiments
<br />from the Board," Jim says, so the oPerations
<br />and maintenance must be at a pretty high
<br />level. I
<br />Few would take issue with t~ese
<br />observations. Years ago, when Jerry was
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<br />working for the U. S. Bureau of
<br />Reclamation, he admired the classy nature-
<br />of the District's operations and
<br />maintenance. He was impressed by the wS;y'
<br />buildings were always painted, how roads
<br />were regularly maintained, weeds '
<br />eliminatedl and vegetation controJIed
<br />around structures, Presently an employee
<br />of the Distritt, Jerry is proud to'he part of
<br />the system that provides supplemental
<br />water to fanners, municipalities and rural
<br />. domestics.
<br />They are getting '3 good deal - lIthe
<br />cheapest water around, II as Harold puts it..
<br />"Not.o(lly do we provige -them' with a _
<br />bargain, but it is enjoyable working with
<br />. the ,people who share i_n-,this enterpris~_ ~_
<br />could name you a' hundred iristl1I1Ces,'1 he
<br />says, I'of times we have had fun together
<br />working hard. I have laid in the mud and
<br />poured concrete in the rain. We didnlt get
<br />rich, but we had a bond, a fellowship, and
<br />you knew the job wasn't going to be sold
<br />tomorrow. Y QU had a steady paycheck
<br />coming, and you knew the future would
<br />get better as time went on. It has, and it
<br />did."
<br />This sense of accomplishment has
<br />sprung as much from a special pride that
<br />employees have shared. They know, as
<br />Manager Larry Simpson points out in his
<br />"Message," that the District has taken that
<br />extra step to help people and to prevent as
<br />much as possible any unforeseen damages
<br />or injuries that might result from building
<br />and maintaining District projects.
<br />Gene knows, for example, ranchers
<br />near Windy Gap who used to be suspicious
<br />of anocher East Slope water project, are
<br />now supportive because of the extra efforts
<br />the District has made to check their water
<br />pumps and replace those which were not
<br />pumping rheir full allocation. Harold, Ken
<br />and Jim have seen this same cooperative
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<br />0& M crews
<br />replacing concrete
<br />canal sections
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<br />spirft" evolve on the East Slope) where
<br />District e:mployee:s l:tnd farmets have shared
<br />in the work to be done'with a mutual desire
<br />for good relations. As John says, Ilthis is a
<br />gorgeoQS system. It is one of the prettiest,
<br />-wen~kept operations I have seen,"
<br />This does not -mean, howeverl that
<br />the system has been static ever since it
<br />became fully operational in 1957.
<br />Minerva's,usleepy 1ittl~ water district}) has
<br />grown, and growth means growing pains.
<br />That old familiar-icy around the office is
<br />harder to come by. Computers don't
<br />usually make you 1aughj cry, perhaps!
<br />~ W Qrkcrews are-divided more often due' to
<br />new West Slope oliligarions. Budget
<br />reque~ts.have to be made in'adva,nce and
<br />fought-for because of increased:competition
<br />for dollars. The freedom to experiment
<br />seems to be less appreciated as policies and
<br />procedures become standardized. And
<br />there are those new demands for water
<br />which make people wonder what will
<br />happen to the District in the future,
<br />But many of the changes are good.
<br />Ken notes that the a:dvent of carry~over
<br />water and a more flexible system of
<br />providing non~charge water have greatly
<br />benefited the farmers. Minerva has pointed.
<br />out the accounting problems that were
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<br />Computerization
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