The Basics
Years of Service: Five
Division: Transformation & Customer Experience
Role: My current position is with the newly formed customer advocacy team as an out-of-class senior customer service representative. I enjoy working with the public to answer their questions and provide resources to find the best possible solutions.

Background
Hometown: Seattle, Washington
Alma Mater: Eastern University
Discipline/Trade of Study: I graduated from Garfield High School (go Bulldogs!) and received my undergraduate degree in interdisciplinary studies from Eastern University. Tell us about your family: My mother was born in Japan and moved to Seattle when my grandfather was stationed at Joint Base Lewis-McChord in Tacoma. My dad was born in British Honduras, which is now Belize and moved to New York, joined the Army and was eventually stationed in Seattle. My parents eventually met sometime in the 70s and I have two sisters, one brother, two nephews and four nieces. My sisters have both moved to the south, while my brother and I have stayed local. I also have a HUGE extended family, tons of cousins, aunts and uncles who have filled my life with extreme joy and laughter. 

Just for Fun
Where do you currently live and what’s something you love about the area? I come from a family rich in culture and very diverse, which is why I love living in the South Seattle area.  More specifically, I live in the 98118! 

How do you like to spend your time when you’re not working? When I’m not working, I spend my time raising my pride and joy, Nina, who turned five this year. It’s been a challenging year for everyone with the pandemic, but we have managed to find creative ways to stay active. We’ve gone to outside movies, driven through Northwest Trek, taken a ferry to Bainbridge Island, and even stayed at a hotel to enjoy the pool! For Halloween this year, Nina dressed up as ”Quaran-Tina Turner” and won best costume.

What brought you to City Light? I worked at the Seattle Public Library in borrower services for three years before coming to City Light. I joined the utility in 2017 as an out-of-class employee in account control. I became a permanent employee in 2018 and have worked in account control and validation ever since.

What do you enjoy most about working at City Light? What I love about City Light is that the utility provides employees with both growth and learning opportunities. I have been fortunate to participate in the Women in Power Mentorship program, which has been a rewarding experience. I plan to take advantage of the opportunities provided so that I can continue to learn about the different career paths available within City Light.

The Basics
Years of Service: 22+
Division: Utility Operations & Engineering
Role: I supervise crews who maintain and install equipment in substations for system reliability. We also maintain commercial and industrial substations throughout the city, occasionally supporting our generation projects: Skagit, Boundary, Cedar Falls, and Tolt Powerhouses.

Background
Hometown: Born and raised in Seattle, Washington
Alma Mater: University of Washington (UW), South Seattle College and North Seattle Community College
Discipline/Trade of Study: I graduated from Shorewood High School and went to the University of Washington for general studies before obtaining an associate of applied science degree in multi-occupational trades from South Seattle Community College. I also completed the electrical constructor apprenticeship at City Light, and previously studied industrial electronics at North Seattle Community College. I am also recognized and have my journey worker card with the IBEW union through Local 77. Tell us about your family: Our family is a blended family. I reconnected with my wife Sarah at our high school reunion, but I’ve known her since we were in the same class back in the third grade. It’s amazing to see how we’ve both lived our lives after all these years, only to have it come back around to find each other. Between us, we have five wonderful children, four daughters aging 16-8, and one son who is 13. Our children make it easy on us, and often we forget that we are blended. During the pandemic, it’s been challenging at home with my wife teaching, and all the kids being online with school. When we were able to, one of our favorite things to do is vacation, get away, and explore new places – especially if it included a pool or a spot for the kids to spend many hours in the water! Hopefully we will be able to do it all again soon.

Just for Fun
Where do you currently live and what’s something you love about the area? I currently live in Snohomish County in an unincorporated area between Lynnwood and Bothell. What I love most about where I live is sharing the warmth in our house with my family and enjoying the sight of the forested greenbelt from our backyard.

What are some of your favorite activities/hobbies? Golf has to be my favorite activity to get outside, relax, and disconnect from daily life. My son and I have also picked up riding dirt bikes as another hobby that we enjoy. I love to get away and go on trips with my wife, daughters, and son in more normal times.

What brought you to City Light? I come from a family of electricians. They worked primarily in the shipyards and the state ferries, parks and were part of the IBEW (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers) Local 46 Union. Other family members worked in different departments within the City of Seattle; that led me to complete the electrical apprenticeship at City Light while studying industrial electronics at North Seattle Community College.

What do you enjoy most about working at City Light? What I love most about City Light is the ability to see firsthand how we can adjust as a utility to support the needs of the increasing demand of reliable power. A good example is being a part of the construction of Denny Substation and seeing everything it takes to build a substation in a modern environment right in the heart of Seattle.

The Basics
Years of Service: Two
Division: Customer Care & Energy Solutions
Role: I work closely with owners, developers, building operators, property managers, tenants, and a network of contractors and service providers to implement energy efficient services, conduct program outreach, and act as a point of contact for businesses and multifamily properties.

Background
Hometown: Seattle, Washington
Alma Mater: University of Washington – Go Dawgs!
Discipline/Trade of Study: A bachelor’s degree in communications, a master’s in public administration, and a professional certificate in environmental law & regulations.

Just for Fun
Where do you currently live and what’s something you love about the area? Living in West Seattle, I have really enjoyed kayaking, weather permitted! I also love playing with dirt in my garden and waking up to the sounds of the ferry boat fog horns in the morning along with the occasional stroll on beautiful Alki Beach.

What is your favorite local restaurant and dish of choice? I love Spud’s Fish and Chips on Alki and love pretty much any and everything on the menu, but mostly the cod…mmmmm.

What is something most people don’t know about you? I love classic jazz music, movies from the Golden Age of Hollywood, and I have a 1963 Golden Hawk Stuedebaker.

What do you enjoy most about working at City Light? City Light’s commitment to conservation, staff development and race and social justice initiatives really resonated with me and attracted me to the utility initially. Being a part of the City Light family for two years now, I have loved the flexible work hours, my management’s support and the overall satisfaction I get from delivering creative solutions for our customers.

The Basics
Years of Service: Two
Division: Customer Care & Energy Solutions
Role: I focus on conservation programming for our new construction and multifamily customers, specifically affordable housing and efficient, low greenhouse-gas-emitting properties. In 2020, I also had the opportunity to support the Utility Discount Program, which was expanded in response to COVID-19.

Background
Hometown: Wenatchee, Washington
Alma Mater: Western Washington University and Columbia University
Discipline/Trade of Study: A bachelor’s degree in international business and a master’s in public administration in environmental science and policy.
Tell us about your family: My family is constantly changing because my husband and I foster dogs for a local rescue organization. We also have a lot of extended family in the area (about 15 aunts and uncles and 20-plus cousins). Although we have not seen them in person during COVID-19 , we’ve maintained a weekly Zoom since March 2020. The calls can get a bit unruly with so many people on the line, but I am thankful for the clamor as it provides a proxy to in-person gatherings.

Just for Fun
What’s something you have learned more about through quarantine? My husband and I live in the Greenwood area, and I have to say that the neighborhood has to be my favorite part about living here. During isolation, we’ve gotten to know neighbors better through socially distant happy hours and joint neighborhood yard sales, which has been nice!

What’s your favorite indoor activity? I’m a pretty voracious reader. This year I’ve particularly gravitated toward BIPOC women authors writing science fiction, such as N.K. Jemisin and Rebecca Roanhorse. Their writing was especially powerful to me during the pandemic because I got to live in the futures they’ve imagined, and it pushed me to think about the future I’d like to live post- pandemic.

What’s your favorite travel memory/experience? I worked in Washington, D.C., for international aid organizations, collaborating with grantees worldwide on process involvement and procurement. After D.C., my husband and I moved to India where I worked for a social enterprise that focused on increasing access to solar and other products in urban communities. I was also involved in selecting and testing new products like solar fans and water filters. Working in these communities and living in a densely populated area, it became quickly apparent how important strong local government and environmental policies are. Water scarcity was becoming an alarming issue, and almost all potable water had to be trucked in or purchased in water bottles. Local government efforts were also draining local water tables. This experience inspired me to go to graduate school to study public administration in environmental science and policy.

What do you enjoy most about working at City Light? If I had to pick one thing about City Light that I absolutely love, it would be my team. We have come together during this last year, and I feel very grateful to see them every day. If I get to pick more than one, I’d say the work is thought-provoking, and I love getting to be a part of creating the future for the City of Seattle.

From Field Operations manager for North Line to Manager of Stations, Relay, and Operators, Tosha Siebert reflects on her new role

Tosha Siebert joined City Light as the Field Operations Manager for North Line. “I started my job in March 2020, just a few days before Gov. Inslee announced the stay-at-home order for COVID-19!” Tosha explained. “Starting during this time was extremely difficult. Right away, I had to start implementing new policies and procedures before people had even gotten the chance to get to know me. With all of us continuing to come in each week, we were forced to find different ways to do our work and communicate with each other.”

Born in California but raised in Washington, Tosha considers herself a true Washingtonian. She lives in the Snoqualmie area where she, “loves the beautiful views we have of the Cascades! It’s truly beautiful here, especially when it’s snowing, and I get to enjoy a good romance movie with my electric blanket!”

In this week’s (spot)Light, Tosha talks about her new role at City Light and what she has enjoyed most about her time at the utility.

“I started as the Line Operations Manager at the North Service Center where I learned so much about the operational aspects of our overhead, underground residential distribution, streetlight, and Line Service crews. I have now graciously accepted the offer to move to a new role where I will be able to shift my focus over to learning more about the services our Substation, Relay and Non-Attended Substation (NAS) Operator workgroups provide. Since starting this new role things have been very different. I am getting more of an opportunity to get out and meet employees with less focus on implementation and planning around the pandemic,” Tosha shared. She comes to City Light from Tacoma Power where she previously completed two apprenticeships; her first was a three and a half year Meter apprenticeship, the second being another three and a half year Relay apprenticeship. She also received her Bachelor of Science in Business Management earlier this year.

“A shorter commute, the opportunity to learn more about utility operations and develop my leadership skills were all positives in my decision to join the City Light team. The ability to work with so many different workgroups in Transmission and Distribution Operations piqued my interest, and I feel so privileged to work with and continue to learn from so many great people around me.”

From Boston to Seattle, Eliza Ives shares her passion for the outdoors and upcoming advancements in renewable energy.

Renewable Energy Program Manager Eliza Ives has been with City Light for three and a half years. “I started as a graduate intern and decided to stick around!” she exclaimed.

“I am originally from just outside of Boston and studied evolutionary biology at Harvard, which got me into the marine biology world. After five years, I returned to school to get my master’s in public administration from the University of Washington’s Evans School of Public Policy,” Eliza shared. “My spouse’s job brought us to Seattle nine years ago. I was happy not to be in a landlocked area, as were my marine biology interests (in a former life, I worked for NOAA doing large marine mammal passive acoustics research).”

In this week’s (spot)Light, Eliza talks favorite winter weather activities and her work at City Light.

“In the theme of the winter season, my absolute favorite activity is skiing! We’re Crystal Mountain die-hards and try to get out there as much as possible during the season. I grew up chattering down the icy hills of Vermont, so PNW skiing was a huge adjustment at first, but the new terrain (and the cascade concrete) has made me a much better skier over the years,” Eliza said. “In terms of hobbies, I really enjoy bird watching. You can do it anywhere (even in a parking lot!) and, for me, it’s one of the few activities that slows me down and keeps me grounded in the present moment – it’s almost a meditative experience.

“It was the former Customer Energy Solutions division that sparked my excitement about City Light. I had no idea the utility was doing so much work in energy efficiency or renewable energy programs, and I found it appealing that close to 90% of our energy is hydro and carbon neutral. It also felt great being part of a municipal department. I really liked that I would be working to better my community and that the utility answers directly to our customers.

“As one of two renewable energy program managers, I manage some of our renewables programs, including the state solar incentive, community solar, and net metering. This year I joined a new team tasked with developing a race and social justice strategy for the Customer Care and Energy Solutions division,” Eliza explained. “Generally, my job entails ensuring our customer-generators understand the utility benefits of installing solar as well as their eligibility for utility rates like net metering, net metering aggregation, and large solar and/or state incentives.

“Looking forward, I am particularly excited about community solar. We’re working with the National Renewable Energy Laboratory to research feasible program designs for the next generation of community solar, including a carve-out for our customers surviving on low-to-moderate incomes. I think there is so much opportunity for the utility to expand access to the benefits of renewable energy, and this is one way we might do it.”