Billy O’Neal has been a safety specialist at City Light for nearly 10 years. In his role, Billy helps the utility stay in compliance with safe workplace regulations; he interprets laws and then enforces them to keep our workplace safe and sound. Billy was introduced to City Light by a friend who worked here and sold him on the company, and he’s never looked back. “I have great coworkers and a great team. We’re split into different areas, but we work together and have each other’s backs,” Billy said. “We help each other out; no problem. I’ve said it before, but this is the best job I’ve ever had.”

Born and raised in Texas, Billy moved to Washington in 1992. He lives in Bremerton with his daughter, two grandchildren, and three great-grandchildren. “I love the summers here. It’s the most gorgeous place,” he shared.” I don’t think the weather could be any better.  There are so many places we can visit but I like the beaches near Bremerton.”

In this week’s spotlight, learn about Billy’s time in the Navy and his goal to learn Spanish and play the keyboard.

“I am originally from Texas. I came to Washington by way of the Navy. I was in the Navy for 20 years and I decided to stay here. In the Navy, the medical people are called the corpsmen. Being a corpsman, you can work in the pharmacy, in labs, do physicals, sew people up, all sorts of medical stuff.”

“I was originally a medical assistant when I got out of the Navy; my first job was a medical assistant in an occupational safety and health office. They do things like workplace physicals, but they allowed me to move into the safety realm. I went to Columbia Southern University and got a degree in safety.”

“During my time in the Navy, I got to travel the world and see a lot of different places. Singapore was my favorite. Coming from Texas, my view of the world was kind of small, so visiting other cities and countries allowed me to appreciate the world a lot more. You’re exposed to the different levels of poverty and lack of resources. It’s probably a cliché that people say Americans take things for granted, but we do. The smallest things like taking apples to an orphanage is a big deal in other places. We just have so much, and you don’t realize it until you see people in other levels of living.”

“I’m attempting to play the keyboard and learn Spanish. I haven’t mastered them, but I’m trying! I’ve enrolled in classes and use programs and CDs to learn. My mother used to play piano which was pretty cool. As I became an adult and had time, I thought if my mother could do it, then I could, too! Some people are more gifted, and some work harder. I think I’m one of those that has to work harder!”

 Business Unit Administrator Jackie Smith began her City Light journey 39 years ago as a meter reader. Through her tenure, she’s worked in 11 different positions including her present role in the utility’s Engineering and Technology Innovation business unit where she focuses on budget processes, strategic planning, project improvement and more. “One of the things I really like about City Light is the opportunity to coach people,” Jackie shared. “I like to pass on what I’ve learned. I worked my way up from being a meter reader, so I like helping employees with personal development plans, resumes and interview skills so they can move up in the utility.” 

Born and raised in Washington, Jackie has been married to her husband, Terry, for 46 years. They live in Burien and have one daughter and one granddaughter. “Burien is a hidden gem that celebrates the diversity of our neighbors with numerous multicultural community events throughout the year,” Jackie said.

In this week’s (spot)Light, read all about Jackie and Terry’s impressive travels (spoiler: party cruises), dancing and her plans for retirement.

“My husband likes to fish. We love to cruise on our boat, but we recently sold it — we’re boat less right now! Our boating club plans weekend rendezvous to all the coastal towns where we hang out together and play games. As soon as you’re on the water you’re on vacation. You’re not stuck in any traffic.”

“A love for getting out on the water led to becoming elite level cruisers. Our destinations include: Alaska, the Mediterranean and Italy, Croatia, Montenegro, and Monaco as well as Caribbean cruises to Panama, Costa Rica, Colombia, Aruba, Puerto Rico, Belize, Honduras, Mexico, and Grand Cayman. We also do one-night trips to Vancouver that are full cruises with meals and shows. They’re very affordable and popular for bachelorette parties and family reunions, so they’re referred to as the party cruise!”

“In 2009 we got the traveling bug and went to China. That was our first international trip. Last year we visited Vietnam and Ecuador and just returned from a trip to Scandinavia and Russia. We have a future trip planned to Morocco and a trip to Germany, Amsterdam, Bruges and Paris after I retire. We’ve met some fun people on our travels. In fact, we stayed in touched with people from our Vietnam trip and ended up going to Ecuador with two of them! We’re also going with them to Morocco and are planning trips to Thailand and Peru.”

“My husband and I also enjoy the outdoors and like to dance. We go to Zumba five days a week. We also attend Daybreaker Seattle and just finished private salsa lessons. Our favorite outdoor activities include long walks in our neighborhood and day hikes. We can usually work hiking into our vacations and have also done local treks like Crystal Mountain. What I love about Seattle is that we don’t have to go very far to enjoy nature.”

Looking toward her future and retirement, Jackie says, “I’ll really miss the people and the work. I’m used to being busy and I love helping people so I’m looking for volunteer opportunities in the community.”

From Electrical Engineering Manager to his current position as Generations Operations & Engineering (GO&E) Director, Faz Kasraie has played an active role in City Light’s generation projects since joining the utility in 1983. “I’ll celebrate 35 years with City Light this November,” Faz said. “I started as an assistant electrical engineer and have worked through the ranks across different business units. It’s been rewarding because I got to learn different facets of the utility.”

Born and raised in Iran, Faz moved to the United States after high school. “I didn’t speak a word of English, so I took courses to learn the language,” Faz shared. He enrolled in Oklahoma State University, transferred to the University of Washington and completed his studies at Seattle University, where he graduated with a degree in electrical engineering. He later earned a second degree in mechanical engineering.

Faz and his wife Melinda live in northeast Seattle and have two sons Michael and Mark. He’s also an avid biker. “I love biking, it’s recently become a big part of my life,” he shared. “I enjoy big biking events. A few co-workers and I participate in organized rides like RSVP, STP and Cycle Oregon.”

In this week’s (spot)Light, Faz talks about the work of his team and what he enjoys about his career.

“Before moving here, I came across an article in Time Magazine that featured the first female governor of Washington state. Because that was the cover story, a big chunk of the magazine was focused on Washington. Boeing was huge at the time and it was impressive to me that it was based here. I remember reading the article and thinking that Washington had to be a cool place; it just caught my attention. I also had a friend at UW which helped influence my decision to come here.”

“When I was going to school, power wasn’t a field that was emphasized. I was interested in telecommunications engineering. Fiber optics was just starting to emerge, and the technology was so young. After graduation, I was in downtown Seattle and happened to walk by City Light’s administration office. There were several job listings posted, so I applied and never looked back. That’s the nice thing about electrical engineering—it’s quite diversified. It’s so broad that with a little adjustment and additional training, you can shift your focus and get into a different field than what you originally intended.”

“City Light has three engineering disciplines—electrical, mechanical and civil which also includes structural engineering. Through the years, I’ve managed our electrical engineering staff which supports GO&E operations, including our seven hydrogeneration facilities. That team also provides a variety of electrical engineering support for these facilities. If a generator or power transformer needs troubleshooting, our electrical engineers will get those calls.  They also support the plants themselves.”

“I’ve had great mentors at City Light. They were tremendous assets and helped develop my experience with the utility and the industry. And that’s one thing I’ve tried to do over the years—to provide support and mentorship to our employees. Part of that is to bring new blood into the organization. To teach them, to mentor them, so that when they finish their education they can begin their careers here. It’s been a great success. Many of our students are supervisors, managers and directors, either here or at other utilities. It’s rewarding to see that progression and to see individuals thrive in the industry.”

Melissa Skelton has been at City Light for three and a half years. She initially served as a Legal Affairs Advisor on a small team in the General Manager’s Office, but now works in Regulatory Affairs as a strategic advisor. “I love my job. I’m in the right place at the right time,” Melissa said. “My work centers around monitoring regulatory policy issues and dockets at the federal regulatory level for matters associated with transmission and wholesale sales of power.  So, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is my main ballpark, where we look at high-level issues that affect the entire utility and engage City Light as necessary.”

Melissa was born in Washington D.C. but spent most of her life in Kansas. She attended the University of Kansas (go Jayhawks!) and earned a degree in Biodiversity, Ecology, and Evolutionary Biology. “With my ecology background, it really matters to me how City Light interacts with our environment,” Melissa shared. “Everything we do (or don’t do) affects every other living thing on this planet.”

After college, she took the legal route and attended Washburn University School of Law. Melissa and her husband Joshua relocated to Seattle in 2014 and welcomed their first child, Malcolm, two years later. This past February, they welcomed their second son, Conrad.

In this week’s (spot)Light, Melissa talks about the joys of being a mother, running with elk and sailing around the world.

 

“I love trying new things. I love to cook and travel. I like to hike, go to hot yoga, anything active. I also enjoy reading, being part of book clubs, all those types of things. What’s cool is that Joshua and I incorporate our kids into the things we like. We bought a double jogging stroller, so we take them out when we go for a run or take them hiking. We can still do a lot of the things we love and show them what we love.”

“Right now, I’m focused on running. I’m training for a 10k in September and excited to have a reason to train. It’s also helping me get back in shape after having our second baby. There are two places where I love to run. One is Meadowbrook Farm. It’s right at the base of Mount Si. It has beautiful views. There’s a big elk herd out there; you can often see them in the early morning hours. It’s neat to be out there with your thoughts and nature and run next to elk. How cool is that? The other place I like to run is Snoqualmie which is where I live. We have some bears in the neighborhood behind us. They’re black bears so they’re not aggressive but there is a mom with two babies, so you must be careful. I have a pretty fast pace when I run in the evenings around there!”

“I was fortunate to do the Semester at Sea program when I was in college, which is a semester aboard a ship sailing to ten locations all around the world. We started in Vancouver, then went to Japan, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia, India, Egypt, Croatia, Turkey, Italy, and Morocco before ending back in Miami. It was an amazing opportunity and opened my eyes to issues around the world. I’m looking forward to international travel again in the future (once the boys are out of diapers!).”