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L.U. 721 (u), CHATTANOOGA, TNAt the April meeting, Local 721 honored members with long service. Recognized for 60 years service were Walter C. Harber and John D. Jaynes. Fifty-five-year members honored were Max D. Harwood, Daniel C. Hayes and Robert D. Kephart. And those recognized for their 50 years of service were J. W. Bolton Jr., Doyal J. Duncan and Gid H. Ward.

R.E. Fuller, P.S.

Congratulations and Thanks

The IBEW Local 743 sign is prominently on display at the Sovereign Center, the new home of the Reading Royals.

L.U. 743 (em&i), READING, PACongratulations to Troy Snyder for having the highest grade average of our 2003 graduating class of apprentices. Others in the class were Kevin Ballas, Scott Burnett, Matthew Carl, Eric Daughtry, Scott Grohol, Clinton Hunt, Jeffrey Karas, Jack Kennedy, Jr., Thomas Matlock, Gregory Miller, Eric Sallade, Jason Stevens, Matthew Stewart and Jeremiah Tucker. Congratulations to all our new journeymen.

We had 84 brothers scheduled to go down to Rock Hall, MD, in June to fish for stripersand after a great day of fishing to enjoy a fantastic Chesapeake Bay feast.

We have been donating our time on three projects and thanks to everyone who is helping out on these projects. We never have a problem getting volunteers. I am proud of the generosity and civic mindfulness our local.

We have a new JATC Training Director, Mark Pinkasavage. Mark is a former teacher from our program. We know he will do a fine job. Just remember, brothers and sisters "we need oarsmen, not anchors."

Dave Paskowski, P.S.

Recovering Market Share

L.U. 804 (i&o), Kitchener, ON, CANADALocal 804s Market Recovery Program (MR) is working well and is a necessary evil when competing against our nonunion counterparts within the electrical industry. While we are able to maintain our own within the industrial sector, MR has been used in the commercial and industrial sectors to secure wages and benefits for Local 804 members.

In the first quarter of the year, MR terms and conditions were provided on approximately 70 projects, which allowed us to secure over 43,000 hours of work for the members. This translates into approximately $1.45 million in wages and benefits being provided for our membership. Without the assistance of MR, those monies would have gone into the pockets of the nonunion workers.

MR will remain in effect until we can increase our market share within a highly competitive industry. The only way to do that is to organize those who continue to work for substandard wages and benefits and eat away at the terms and conditions our collective agreement provides. We must continue to fight and regain control of our industry.

Brett McKenzie, B.M./F.S.

Worlds Biggest Battery

The Local 852 crew at the TVA Regenesys site, Columbus, MS.

L.U. 852 (i,o,&u), CORINTH AND TUPELO, MSTechnology with the potential to change the way power systems operate by providing a means of storing electricity for significant periods of time will be on display at the Regenesys Plant, located in Columbus, MS, adjacent to the Columbus Air Force base.

Groundbreaking was in 2001 after TVA signed a contract with INNOGY Technology Ventures Limited of Great Britain, which designed the plant and provided the modules to store up to 120 Megawatt hours of energy. The plant will have 39,000 feet of pipe upon completion. The plant, which should be operating in 2004, will improve system reliability in the western part of the TVA power system by eliminating momentary interruptions and maintaining voltage levels.

The regions overloaded power grid dishes out 25 blackouts a year as well as another 200 or so voltage fluctuations that crash sophisticated flight simulators. The solutionthe worlds largest battery. Two cavernous steel tankseach one is 10 meters tall and 20 meters in diameterwill hold 4 million liters of concentrated salt solution, electrolyte that will be charged and discharged by 24,000 fuel cells in an adjacent building at night. This installation, known as a flow cell battery, will suck electricity from the grid and store the energy, which it will discharge during the day when power lines are strained. When blackouts strike, common in the tornado prone region, the huge battery will keep the base humming for up to 24 hours.

Jackie B. Smith, B.M.

Award Ceremonies

65-year member Robert McDonald with Local 915 President Randall King.

L.U. 915 (i&mt), TAMPA, FLOur April meeting was quite festive. It started with a big cookout, followed by award ceremonies and a special guest speaker.

Among the 134 members eligible for Service Pin Awards, we honored 29 members for five years of service, 11 for 10 years; nine for 15 years; eight for 20 years; six for 25 years; 38 for 30 years; 12 for 35 years; four for 40 years; three for 45 years: Gene Carter, William Gunter, and N.F. West; five for 50 years: Donald Freeman, Garrett Gay, Freddie Hobbs, Alfred Reid and Charles Wade, Jr.; five for 55 years: Robert Gartley, Edward Hendrix, Henry Hurst, Henry Padgett, and James Thompson; three for 60 years: Lamar Alford, Max Gainey, and R.B. McNabb; and Robert McDonald for 65 years.

The Brother-of-the-Year-Award was given to P.D. Carlisle. Guest speaker for the evening was the former Hillsborough County School Board Member, Fla. State House Member, Fla. State Senator, and current Hillsborough County Commissioner, Pat Frank (D). Pat spoke about the importance of registration drives and voting in all elections. She has always been a friend of Local 915 andas alwayswas well received.

Bob Kaiser, P.S.

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