It was a beautiful September morning when I got in touch with Dale to see if I could talk to him about his time working for Wayne-White Electric Cooperative. He was quickly agreeable but said to give him about 10 minutes as he was out finishing his daily walk around the neighborhood.
Dale is 96 1/2 years old.
It did not take long to realize how much Wayne-White Electric meant to Dale and how much he treasured his time working and the relationships he built along the way. We quickly jumped right in and started at the beginning.
Picture it: Fairfield, 1949.
Married on Mother's Day 1949, Dale and his new wife Erma Lou went to a family dinner the following Sunday where they saw Wayne-White Electric lineman Bernard Malone. Bernard, married into the family, was telling Dale of a Warehousing Agent position that Wayne-White was soon going to be hiring for and that he should apply.
Not wasting any time, Dale stopped by Wayne-White Electric the next day on his break. Working at the courthouse with no future growth in site, Dale walked to the office that was on Court Street at the time and asked to talk to Manager Owen Chaney. He informed Mr. Chaney that Bernard told him he should inquire about the position and Mr. Chaney hired him on the spot.
Dale walked back to his job at the courthouse, wrote out a resignation letter he turned in to his boss, started work at Wayne-White Electric the next day, and did not leave until he retired 47 years later.
Now if you will remember, Wayne-White Electric Cooperative was established in 1937. Between buy-in from members and World War II, it took several years for everyone in the rural areas to receive power to their homes. When Dale and Erma Lou got married, they lived north of the Sims crossroads in a home that did not have power to it yet. Dale recalled that Ray Huss was the Wayne-White Staking Engineer at the time that staked their service, and Glen Hillyard from Geff was the electrician that wired his house. When Mr. Hillyard completed the wiring and the home was electrified, Erma Lou used the new electric service to cook Mr. Hillyard dinner.
Anyway, back to Wayne-White...starting out in the Warehouse, Dale started working during the peak of line construction. From a previous Association of Illinois Electric Cooperatives (AIEC) article about the cooperative, Dale stated, " The co-op was really beginning to address the need of extending lines to people who were anxiously waiting for electricity. We had more than 100 employees at that time, and it was an exciting period in the history of this co-op."
Did we mention that his "warehouse" was in the basement of the Court Street building? Materials were stored there and trucks were housed in a lot across the street. Dale recalled laying out material for the guys after talking with the line supervisor on the day's projects. He also remembered that the poles came in by railroad at the time and the pole yard was east of town. Then in 1953, the current building on the west edge of town was built with a much larger warehouse facility, making it much easier to find everything that was needed on a daily basis.
One of the things Dale enjoyed about his job was all of the relationships he built with vendors, members, and his fellow coworkers. He loved meeting with the linemen in the morning before they went out to work in the field, and in the afternoon when they made it back to the office. He said there were lots of serious talks, but a lot of laughs too. Just recently, Dale had been chatting with Jimmy Meritt, former lineman and Dale's coworker at Wayne-White for many years.
When asked about a memory or event that still resonates with him today, he recalled the major ice storm of 1979. In the AIEC article from the early 2000s, Dale recalled, "That storm in 1979 was the worst because we had ice and then such deep snow that when the crews started to work, we could not even get our equipment down the roads. The drifts were so huge that our trucks would get stalled." Most cooperative members understood the severity of the storm and the damage it left behind and worked together while repairs to electric lines and other facilities were finished. "The storm brought the community together in a way that we had not witnessed in a long time. People took their neighbors into their homes and others had generators and they were going up and down the road to help charge people's freezers and just helping out. There was a spirit of cooperation that I thought was just outstanding," Warren reflected. He even remembered taking a picture of the galloping lines and sending it to one of the Evansville news stations, who then ran it on their newscast.
From remembering when he first got electricity, to all of the many changes he witnessed during 47 years working at the electric cooperative, Dale has seen many advances in equipment and technology. Whereas now we can read meters from the office, change poles with digger trucks and work on lines from the bucket trucks, that was not the case for a large part of Dale's time at Wayne White Electric. "We didn't have modern equipment then. They dug holes with an auger and sat poles with 20 foot pikes. It was all manpower. They climbed every pole. Electronic and hydraulic equipment changed the way we worked." Speaking of modern technology, Dale mentioned he likes to Zoom into two church services on Sunday evenings, one service on Monday, and a prayer service on Wednesday evenings. He has made many acquaintances through the computer from all over the world!
Not only did Dale make a lasting impact on Wayne-White Electric, he served our community and surrounding area on various boards for many years. Dale served on the Fairfield Memorial Hospital Association Board of Directors from 1992 to 2016, the Soyland Power Board of Directors (a former Wayne-White Electric generation and transmission cooperative), from 1990 to 1996, the Wayne County Housing Authority Board of Directors from 1969 to 2019 (that is 50 YEARS!), and as Member of Regional Presidency for the East Central States Region Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from 1979 to 1991. He was even recognized with the Community Service Award from the Greater Fairfield Area Chamber of Commerce in 1993 and a Civic Award from the Illinois State Senate. You might have heard of the Brushcreek Campground near Orchardville. Dale was one of the people that chaired the creation of that campground, that still serves as host to many camps, reunions, and gatherings of all kinds. Dale said he felt, "Blessed to have the opportunity to serve the community." Needless to say, Dale has done a lot for our community and surrounding area in his 96 1/2 years!
At the age of 67, Dale decided he really did not have a good reason to stay at work for 50 years, so he decided to retire in good health in June of 1996 after 47 years of dedicated service to the cooperative. The last six years of his career, he served as Manager of Wayne-White Electric. In retirement, Dale and Erma Lou loved to camp in parks all over the United States, pulling a camper with them wherever they went. Although nearly unheard of these days, Dale and Erma Lou were happily married for almost 72 years before she passed away in 2021. He tearfully and consistently described her as such a blessing and gave her credit for much of his success. She is pictured below with him at his retirement reception at Wayne-White Electric.
Multiple times throughout our conversation, Dale described Wayne-White Electric Cooperative as a blessing, saying, "In my prayers every evening, I thank God for my job at Wayne-White Electric."
He was proud to be a part of bringing power to rural America, especially our part of Southern Illinois. "Wayne-White was and is the best place to work in Wayne County. I loved my job." Dale and Erma Lou were so grateful and invested in the people at Wayne-White Electric that Erma Lou was known to cook meals for the linemen at times when they would have to be out late or long hours.
After about an hour and a half, Dale and I's conversation came to an end, although I think I could have stayed all day. He said when he was a boy, he always had the thought that he wanted to live to be 100, and he is sure close. At 96 1/2, he is sharp as a tack and could recall names and details quicker than most. Not only that, he had the best outlook and demeanor, that instantly made me feel at home. It was easy to see why he was and is loved by many in the community and throughout his time at Wayne-White Electric. He is pictured at below the day we met to talk all things cooperative.
With all of the changes he witnessed during his time at Wayne-White, he has not seen the inside of the office since our remodel in 2017. He said maybe he would come by some day to have me give him a tour.
Dale, I am holding you to that promise.
