Lineman hopes to help villagers in Nepal

I traveled to Nepal in March as part of a volunteer effort to help fledgling electric cooperatives electrify remote villages.

Nepal, a country about the size of Iowa, sits on the rooftop of the world. Much of this rugged country is still only accessible by foot and farming is done by hand with oxen and buffalo.

On previous trips to Nepal, I had often thought about helping these wonderful hill people who still flow to the rhythms of the seasons.

Twenty years after my first trip, this dream was coming true. Our team of volunteers worked to complete an assessment of the co-ops, establish an understanding of the environment within which these co-ops would operate, and meet with many agencies that would insure the success of our project.

We flew to the Jhapa district in Southeastern Nepal and visited a potential hydroelectric site. Here, far from the hectic pace of Kathmandu, in the tea-growing hills not far from Darjeeling, India, I finally met some of the Nepalese lineman that I hope to work with in the future. They get much done with so little and I realized I would be as much a pupil as a teacher.

Back in Kathmandu we met representatives from South Lalitpur, another area where we hope to introduce the concept of electrical cooperatives. While electrifying the villages will not solve all their problems, we can expect to see marked improvement in the health of the villagers, improvement in the environment and a greater chance for educational opportunities for the children.

Our initial task completed, we are back home. The project’s goal will be to provide power to 6,000 homes. Our next trip will be more hands on: setting the poles, stringing wire, installing transformers.

Thanks to Flathead Electric Cooperative for allowing me to take time off to pursue this project, and thanks to my fellow employees for donating clothing that I was able to deliver to an orphanage in Kathmandu.