David Spooner

Confessions of a Complacent Lineman

August 21, 2019 | David Spooner | Tailgate Topics

If you have been working in the same role for a while, you know your job. People look up to you because you know what you’re doing. They count on you to get the job done the right way. You have confidence in what you do, too. But have you noticed yourself taking a few […]

Remember Why Safety Rules Were Written

March 20, 2019 | David Spooner | Tailgate Topics

Recently I was thinking back over my career as a lineman. There was a man – we called him Big Jim – who was our safety guy from the time I started in the industry until I had been a lineman for about 20 years. Jim always sported a crew cut and a green hard […]

How Hawaii Electric Light Co. Protected Employees During a Lava Flow

December 14, 2018 | David Spooner | Worksite Safety

On May 3, 2018, Hawaii Electric Light Co., the company I work for, discovered we had a problem. Lava flows were popping up in the middle of a residential neighborhood in our service territory. This wasn’t the first time Hawaii Electric Light had experienced a volcanic eruption, but it was the first time one had […]

If You Could Talk to Your Younger Self, What Would You Say?

July 20, 2018 | David Spooner | Tailgate Topics

“The Shawshank Redemption” is one of my favorite movies. In one scene, Ellis Boyd “Red” Redding, played by Morgan Freeman, is sitting in front of the parole board. He is pouring his heart out to the members of the board when they ask him, “Do you feel rehabilitated?” Red tells them, “I look back on […]