Mandana Baniani joined City Light IT in 2014 as Temporary Senior Quality Assurance Analyst. “When my contract ended, I moved to Asset Data Group, where I learned so much about the importance of data governance and maintaining high-quality asset data for the utility in order to improve reliability, safety, and efficiency,” Mandana explained. “Last year I became a permanent employee with the Supply Chain Management team, and I couldn’t be happier!”

Born in Iran, Mandana moved to Seattle after high school to attend Seattle University, later transferring to Central Washington University. There she earned her bachelor’s in Business Administration and Management. Mandana has lived in Washington for the past 40 years with her husband and two children..

In this week’s (spot)Light, Mandana talks about her life in Edmonds, a range of hobbies and her love for volunteer work.

“My husband and I live in Edmonds not too far from our daughter and her family and we are fortunate to spend time with our six & seven-year-old grandsons regularly and being involved in their daily lives and activities.”

“I enjoy gardening, baking, traveling and event planning. I am creative and absolutely love floral design and have done many wedding flower arrangements including my daughter’s wedding,” she shared. “I enjoy going for long walks and hikes and have participated in many 5K run/walks for various charities. I am passionate about helping those in need and I’ve been volunteering at Mary’s Place and the Ronald McDonald House for over ten years. I’ve held wreath making events with my team of volunteers during the holidays at RMH for kids and their families that are receiving care at Seattle Children’s Hospital. I find volunteering very rewarding and it’s the smallest acts of kindness that make a larger impact on the community.”

“I was initially attracted to City Light because of its flexibility in providing a work-life balance. The greatest part of my job is the people I have met that are so passionate and hardworking and strive to provide the best service to our internal and external customers. I am proud to be part of such a wonderful team here at City Light.”

Ryan Simmons joined City Light in 2015 as the fisheries field coordinator for the Boundary Licensing Team and is now a project manager, overseeing several fisheries projects. “My projects are designed to improve conditions for trout and mountain whitefish populations native to the lower Pend Oreille River,” Ryan explained. “We are studying the genetic structure, demographics, and behavior of these populations through field studies and simulation modeling to inform how best to protect and enhance these native fish species. On any given day, I could be focused on project planning, coordination with our Boundary fisheries biologists, data analysis, contract administration, or communication with stakeholders.”

Ryan was born and raised in Olympia and has spent most of his adult life working in the streams and forests of the Northwest. He attended Western Washington University and pursued his graduate studies at the University of Washington’s School of Aquatic and Fishery Sciences. “During grad school, I spent summers at a remote field station on the Alaska Peninsula studying the early life history and ecology of sockeye salmon,” Ryan shared. “I remember most vividly the rough weather, the rewarding work, the bear encounters and the isolation.”

In this week’s (spot)Light, Ryan talks about his hobbies, family and work at City Light.

“I live on Vashon Island with my wife and four kids. The island offers a great network of trails and natural areas to explore, and we try to spend as much time as we can discovering new areas. The beaches are also a highlight, whether for a summer picnic or a good winter storm. We enjoy growing food and flowers and have gotten to know some great families with whom we have built community.”

“I’m an avid skier, sailor, and enjoy most water sports! My time is devoted to my family… getting the kids outside and interested in the natural world and the sciences. I also enjoy woodworking and building furniture, an interest I picked up from my dad. During this time of year, I like to pick apples and press cider with family and friends. We try to pick 20-30 bushels which yields about 50-60 gallons of cider. A friend and I ferment hard cider; several of our hard ciders have placed or won in regional competitions.”

“I was attracted to City Light because of its longstanding work in some very unique watersheds, and the opportunity to devote a career to working in those systems. As a consultant, it was common to move from project to project on a regular basis. At City Light, I’ve been able to build a deeper understanding of the stream systems I work on and the positive impact of my work.”

“I enjoy what I do at City Light; it’s challenging and diverse. I continually apply my past work experience and education while learning new things along the way. Part of my job satisfaction comes from knowing the work is valued by City Light. We also have the support to investigate novel approaches to better meet project objectives. The greatest part of my job is the people I work with, who come from a diverse range of technical disciplines which has helped me better understand the utility. I feel fortunate to work with a dedicated team who genuinely believes in the work they do.”

Tammie Luc has been at City Light for 11 years. During her tenure, she’s served in a variety of roles, including four and a half years in human resources where she processed payroll and three years on the administrative team for Operations. Currently, Tammie serves as a Management System Analyst at the South Service Center (SSC) where’s she’s been for three and a half years.

Tammie emigrated from Vietnam when she was four years old. “My father left Vietnam to seek better opportunities for us and I went with him,“ Tammie shared. “After five years of separation, he was able to sponsor my mother and younger brother to join us. I’ve lived in Seattle most of my life and really enjoy its seasons.”

In this week’s (spot)Light, Tammie talks about her hobbies, work at SSC and love for the Seahawks.

“I’m a huge Seahawks fan. At SSC, I’m known as the Seahawks rally person! I also play pickleball once or twice per week and like to run races, anywhere from 10Ks to half marathons. During the summer, you can catch me paddle boarding. I love to hike year-round in Washington and am the team captain of City Light’s #3 softball team! Crafting is another activity I enjoy but haven’t had time since I’m the Uber driver for my kids and all their activities – ultimate frisbee, swim meets, softball and basketball games.”

“I have three kids: Amber (17), Hunter (14) and Logan (11). Amber was a high school intern for City Light this past summer. They keep me busy and I love it.  As their Uber driver and cheerleader, they are my world. I’m usually driving them to different sporting events, but they also like to hang with me when I paddleboard and hike.”

“I wanted to work at City Light because growing up in the city, I had always seen the yellow City Light trucks. The crews would ride in and restore power whenever we had an outage. I felt like they were superheroes and wanted to be a part of that. To this day, I still feel have that feeling and my chest pumps with pride knowing that I work alongside them now.”

“In my role, I provide technical support to various positions, develop training plans and create and maintain reports for managers, supervisors and crew coordinators. I coordinate with OH, URD and Line Services Crews to maintain accurate and efficient work schedule. I also work closely with SDOT and other City ROW departments to make sure all permits are in compliance and assist with any coordination that’s needed.”

“Not only do I enjoy my job and get paid for it, but I work with the greatest, friendliest and most unselfish peers. At SSC, I’m often the point person for several activities that my colleagues generously support. I love to collect money for donations and special events, suck their blood by coordinating blood drives, and inflict pain with flu shots. Who else can say they do all those in one place? ME!”

Brandon Melland has been at City Light for 13 years. A journeyman lineman, Brandon began his City Light career as part of the pre-apprentice program. “I’m currently in an out-of-class position as the journeyman assigned to Safety, Health and Wellness (JSHaW). It’s my job to work with crews at our service centers and be an advocate to make changes for the better, “Brandon explained. “Each craft – line, network, tech metering and stations – has its own JSHaW representative. I’m assigned to line which is exciting. I get to work with groups like safety and engineering to help push projects forward. I like it quite a bit.”

Brandon grew up in the Mill Creek area and attended Shoreline Community College where he earned an associate’s degree in Arts & Sciences. “I was accepted into the University of Washington and was just about to transfer, but I changed course and applied for the pre-apprentice lineworker program.” He lives in Bothell with his wife Kristal and their two sons, Sean and Brian.

In this week’s (spot)Light, Brandon talks about his work at the utility, his family and hobbies.

“My family and I like to travel. We’ve been to Japan twice and are planning our third trip. It’s an awesome country and has so much great food. We also like going to Canada. Norway and Hawaii are also on our travel list. I also enjoy woodworking. I inherited a bunch of tools and since I like to work with my hands, I started to build things. Nothing too involved, but I built our bed frame and a few tables.”

“Cooking is popular in our home. My mom and grandma were good cooks, but I didn’t get into it until I started cooking with my wife. She’s a tremendous cook. We do everything – from making our own pasta noodles to baking doughnuts from scratch. I also like to cook fish. My uncles and I take a fishing trip to Alaska just about every year. We visit a town called Soldotna and fish for sockeye salmon along the Kenai River. I like to do nice barbeques with the fish I bring back!”

“I’ve worked in multiple capacities at City Light, from powerline clearance with vegetation management to the docks where we build, maintain and troubleshoot powerlines. I’ve also been involved in different training opportunities. I helped develop our tower rescue program and still do tower rescue. It’s also been fun to work with our apprenticeship team. I’ve participated in some of the outreach efforts where we go to schools and talk to kids about our careers and how being a lineworker is a viable career path. I recently got involved with Grassroots Safety because I care about City Light getting better and safer for the people who work here, myself included. It seems like a good path to make change.”

“I enjoy my work – it’s very satisfying. It’s nice to see a project through completion; to see the results of your labor. Storm work is also very satisfying. It’s the most fun because people are happy to see you for a change! Most of the time, we’re either invisible, in the way or turning off people’s power. But with storm, we’re everyone’s best friend…their heroes…because we’re restoring power. And those reactions are fun.”

Nicole Schultz has worked at City Light since 2011, but her City career began in 1997 as an intern for Seattle Police Department (SPD). She continued with the City by joining Seattle Municipal Court in 2001 and then the Mayor’s Office in 2002. She is now a Senior Marketing Strategist on the Communications Team where she’s served the past eight years. “My main focus is marketing conservation programs to our residential customer base,” Nicole explained. “My work covers a plethora of topics like energy efficiency, how to lower your bill, ways to save energy, different types of technologies like appliances, lighting, solar and our Green-Up program.”

Nicole was born and raised in Seattle. “I’ve lived in the Seattle and Shoreline area pretty much my whole life,” Nicole shared. A true local, Nicole attended Edmonds Community College before transferring to the University of Washington where she majored in Sociology. She recently moved to Lake Forest Park with her son Jackson and two dogs, Buddy and Swayze.

In this week’s (spot)Light, she talks about her community, her role at City Light and shares her favorite hobbies.

“Before getting into marketing, I wanted to be a police officer. I minored in Society Injustice and one of the requirements was to have an internship. So, I interned at SPD in the Crime Survivor Unit. I loved it so much that after my internship was complete, I stayed on as a volunteer for three years!”

“I love to golf. It’s one of my favorite things to do. I go to Alta Lake Golf Resort as much as I can. My dad is the one who got me into golf – he was the golfer. When I was ten years old, he would sneak me into the Jackson Park Golf Course. That’s how I learned, and I became hooked. I take my son Jackson golfing, too. He can play an 18-hole golf course!”

“I’m also very active in my community. I’ve been involved with the Shoreline Little League for many years and currently serve as the president. After my term is up, I plan to stay on the board. I love the community. It’s so much fun watching Jackson and his team. I also love to gamble and going to casinos. I’ve been lucky and have had two big wins on scratch tickets!”

“I’m big on family and spend almost all my time with Jackson. He’s the main reason for everything I do. In fact, one of my rituals is to take a quick walk to Jackson Street. It’s reminds me why I’m here and provides me with a sense of gratitude. It reminds me to be grateful for where I am and is motivation to keep on going. It works out since I also love to exercise and try to move as much as I can!”

“One thing I’ve always liked about my job is that I’m always learning. It’s constantly evolving because we must keep up with new technologies. But it’s more than knowing the new gadget on the market. It’s also about keeping up with best practices and understanding how the industry is operating and functioning. And people always want to save money! A huge part of my job is telling our customers how they can save money. So, it’s not a hard thing to talk about.”