Powering a Brighter Future:
MVEC lineman to help electrify rural Guatemalan village
This month, 14 line workers from Iowa and Minnesota electric cooperatives, including Maquoketa Valley, will embark on a 2,800-mile journey that will improve the quality of life for a rural Guatemalan community for generations. The trip is part of the International Program affiliated with the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), which has been coordinating electric co-op volunteers to electrify villages and communities in impoverished countries around the world since 1962.
MVEC journeyman lineman Bailey Bautsch will join six others from Iowa cooperatives, including Allamakee-Clayton Electric Cooperative, East-Central Iowa Rural Electric Cooperative, Eastern Iowa Light & Power Cooperative, Midland Power Cooperative, North West Rural Electric Cooperative and Prairie Energy Cooperative. They will work with seven linemen from Minnesota electric co-ops and together the team will string lines and wire homes for electricity in the remote community of La Hortiga.
“I am excited to go on this trip to bring electricity to people who haven’t had it,” Bautsch said. “It will be sweet seeing the joy from them and knowing the impact electricity will have on their lives.”
The linemen will leave for Guatemala on June 7 and return home on June 21. The remote community is about an hour from San Marcos, situated in the mountains at about 10,000 feet of elevation. The team will build out about 3 miles of line that will be connected to the local municipal power company, which will take over the service of the lines once completed. After framing pre-set poles and building out conductor, they will install wires and circuits in approximately 15 homes.
The leads for this trip are journeyman line workers Mike Berkenpas from North West REC in Iowa and Eric Dessner from People’s Energy Cooperative in Minnesota. The men traveled to the location in February to scout the work and determine resources and inventory needed to construct the line. For everyone but Berkenpas, this will be their first time
volunteering for this life-changing trip.
NRECA started the International Program to bring prosperity to those less fortunate around the world. Since that time, the organization has powered the lives of more than 160 million people in 48 countries on the continents of Africa, South America, Central America and Asia. Teams assist with all stages of planning and executing electrification projects, promoting electric cooperative development and empowering communities around the world.
“At Maquoketa Valley, we are mission-driven to power lives and empower communities. We are proud to support this project in Guatemala because we know how access to electricity improves quality of life through better education, economic opportunity, safety and health care,” said Jeremy Richert, MVEC CEO.
The linemen will also provide each household with a water filtration kit to help them access clean water. We look forward to sharing more details about the project with you in future issues of Watts Current.
You’re welcome to join the Facebook group called “2024 Powering a Brighter Future in Guatemala” to follow the journey on social media. We will share updates before, during and after the project in this public group. MVEC will also post project updates on our Facebook page.