Richard's impact leaves a lasting legacy

Richard's impact leaves a lasting legacy

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  O ur cooperative losta wise and dedicat- ed team member and a loving friend on April 8 when Richard Berryhill’s battle with pancreatic cancer ended. He was 66. Spending time with Richard was a lesson in itself at times, because he was a fountain of knowledge on many subjects. A selfless helper of others, Richard also encouraged people every chance he had, said his wife, Ira Lou. He loved sharing his knowledge and skills, and when cancer was discovered he remained a quiet warrior to the end. “I wouldn’t take a million dollars for those last eight to 10 weeks of his life,” Ira Lou said. “He came home to die and he didn’t complain a single time. He was the bravest person I’ve ever known.” Richard leaves a long and wonderful legacy, and he will be greatly missed. He was smart and hard-working, but you never got the feel- ing you were wasting his time. On the job, Richard was comfortable in tough work situa- tions and had a way of inspiring others. David Creekmore, Richard’s co-worker since 1978, considered Richard his best friend. “His dedication and sharing of information and knowledge will be long-standing even though he’s gone,” David said. Keith Queen, Manager, Power Delivery, credits Richard with instilling in him 30 years of knowledge in the 10 years the two worked together. Donna Bridges, Engineering Clerk, admired Richard’s brilliance and sense or humor. Richard’s co-workers honored him by lining the entrance to United Memorial Gardens (above) in Dalton when the procession drove past. Both front doors of the hearse were emblazoned with the U.S. Army logo com- memorating Richard’s service. At the time of his death, Richard was a con- tract engineer with us. He had retired in 1999 as Manager of Operations, but Richard wasn’t through putting his talent to good use and rejoined us in 2003. In recent years, he served in various engi- neering capacities, including a temporary role as Field Engineering Supervisor in Fort Oglethorpe. During his career, Richard worked at Dalton Utilities and Georgia Power before coming to our co-op. He started with us in 1978 as a staking engineer and in 1985 was named system engineer. He later served in various management roles before retiring. Richard’s legacy at NGEMC lives on, howev- er, because his son, Richard Berryhill II, was hired by us in 2003 and works as a lineworker in Calhoun. Richard was born in Bessemer City, N.C., and studied engineering at Floyd College, Dalton State College and the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga. Richard joined the Army in 1960 and spent 30 months in Germany. When he came to Dalton in 1965 to visit a friend, he decided to stay. In 1968, he married Ira Lou Gowin. Richard is survived by his wife, Ira Lou; daughters and sons-in-law, Denise and Tim Davis of Fairfield, Conn., Monica and Curt Moore of Shelby, N.C., and Paula and Steve Bigham of Dalton; sons and daughters-in-law, Richard and Sandra Berryhill, Terry and Tracey Chambers, David Feagans and Eyvon Stewart, all of Dalton and Eugene and Kim Chambers of Zephyrhills, Fla.; brother, Tommy Berryhill of Clover, S.C.; sister, Ann Jeffrey of Stanley, N.C.; 18 grandchildren, six great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. Our thoughts and prayers continue to be with Richard’s family. 2 The Cooperative Grapevine May 2008 3The Cooperative Grapevine May 2008 CO-OP news/views COOPERATIVE faces COOPERATIVE calendar June 2008 Blue: Birthdays Green: Hire dates Red: Training Orange: Holidays Purple: Events Sun Mon Tue Wed Thu Fri Sat 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 2322 24 15 16 17 18 25 26 27 28 29 30 19 20 21 9 10 11 12 13 14 Larry Haynes Johnny Stevenson Summer begins Mark Pace Doug Sane Chris Putnam, ‘88 Kevin Stroup, ‘05 Terry Smith, ‘05 Alicia YarberCrew leader training Barry Weaver Luke Hentz Reta Hawkins Kathy Johnson, ‘77 Marshall Hulett, ‘99 Tracy Parker, ‘89 Stephanie Holder, ‘05 Huel Thain, ‘95Teresa Tish, ‘74 Joey Blalock, ‘02 Rick Mason, ‘89 Barry Weaver, ‘76 Shawn Witherspoon,’ 06 Chad Hodges, ‘88 Bill Mooney, ‘88 Mike Murdock, ‘88 Judy Cochran, ‘04 Anita Vlasis, ‘76 Chad Wood, ‘98 Joe Middleton Kim Hefner, ‘93 Adam Dennison, ‘05 Kathy Cavin Chad Wood Kathy Cavin, ‘82 Father’s Day Olga Cheo-Iglesias Chris Putnam Richard Wayne Berryhill April 12, 1941Richard Wayne Berryhill April 12, 1941——April 8, 2008April 8, 2008 Richard’s impact on our co-op leaves a lasting legacy “ ” Richard was really good at pulling out the best in people. —Donna Bridges Friend and co-worker To Dan Dye, crew leader in Trion, and family in the passing of his father, William “Bill” Dye on April 14. SympathyHawkins hired in HR Stephanie Hawkins, recently a dispatcher, was hired recently as human resources clerk start date undetermined. Dupree promoted Scott Dupree, who works in Dalton, was promoted to apprentice lineworker level 3 effective April 20. 1st-time winner Medina grabs $25 in puzzle drawing Across 3. Animal which jumped into Randy Hixon's truck recently. 6. Earned a perfect score on his computer networking test. 7. Percentage rate available until Sept. 30, 2008, on 14 SEER heat pumps financed through the Energy Right Heat Pump pro- gram. 8. Donating money to wear this item of cloth- ing will raise funds for Operation Round Up. Down 1. Subject of national electrical campaign during May. 2. High school which gave food and funds to help needy in Gordon County. 4. New electronic payment system that is free to our customers and can be done online or over the phone. 5. State where TVA recently bought a gas- fired power plant. C arlos Medina, customer service rep- resentative in Dalton, won $25 when his name was drawn as the winner of this month’s Ravenous Readers Contest. If you’ve played before and not won, keep filling out the puzzle and turning it in. We have a winner every month and a $100 win- ner at the end of 2008. Every time you play and correctly answer the puzzle your name goes into both the monthly drawing and in the running for the year-end drawing. Answers are found in this Grapevine and the May issue of The Current Connection, our newsletter in GEORGIA magazine. The Carter Hope Center, a recovery assistance residence for those struggling with addictions, received an $800 grant to help fund the purchase of computers. A laptop computer will allow staff to be mobile in their work, which often requires work-area moves to complete tasks. A desktop com- puter for clients will help in the job-hunt process with applica- tions, communicating with prospective employers, resumes, recovery-related assignments, GED testing, and e-mails to fami- ly. Carter Hope serves all seven counties in NGEMC’s territory. Our customers can sign up for Operation Round Up at www.ngemc.com or at our offices. GRANTSfrom front page