RETIRED — When Donnie Colston was a journeyman lineman with Louisville, Ky., Local 2100, he never dreamed that one day he’d be giving guidance to federal agencies, negotiating with CEOs and testifying before Congress.
“When I was standing on top of a transmission tower, it wasn’t my in my head that I was going to be doing anything other than pulling wire,” said Colston, who retired as Utility Department director April 1.
Colston, who was initiated into Local 2100 in 1980, served in a number of roles, from shop steward to business manager, and even went into government work when then-Gov. Paul Patton appointed him labor liaison and director of administrative services for Kentucky’s Department of Workers’ Claims. But office work wasn’t for him, at least at the time, so after about a year and a half, he went back to the tools.
“I went right back to the truck,” Colston said. “I’d say most of the people that do it, they love the work. It’s very hard to get them away from it.”
But it wasn’t long before he was asked by his business manager to run the local’s political operations, which led to his working with the Greater Louisville Building and Construction Trades Council and the Kentucky chapter of the AFL-CIO.
“Donnie was so effective at engaging and motivating our affiliates and other trade unionists,” said retired Kentucky AFL-CIO President Bill Londrigan, who worked with Colston and has known him for over 30 years. “Not since Donnie was engaged in those efforts have we experienced such turnout and enthusiasm.”
Colston’s affinity for political work eventually led to his appointment as an international representative in the IBEW’s Government Affairs Department in 2013. From there, he moved to the Utility Department. He was appointed director in 2017.
“Donnie brought a lot of experience and wisdom with him to the International Office, and the IBEW is better for it,” said International President Kenneth W. Cooper, who’s also known Colston for years and helped him make the decision to leave Kentucky for Washington. “He’s a true union brother who always put the members’ interests first.”
“I’m not sure that there are very many people who can say, ‘I’m a lineman and I have no college education, but I had the ability to testify before Congress.’”
– Utility Director Donnie Colston
Colston’s work as utility director entailed interacting with agencies including the Environmental Protection Agency, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission. He also testified before Congress on four occasions.
“I’m not sure that there are very many people who can say, ‘I’m a lineman and I have no college education, but I had the ability to testify before Congress,’” Colston said. “To the IBEW’s credit, there are very few unions that bring a 30-year craftsman to the Hill. Only with the strength of the IBEW and its members can a journeyman lineman be given the opportunity to testify before Congress on the members behalf.”
Colston credits his time at the International Office with opening his eyes to all the ways government entities like OSHA and the EPA impact a utility worker’s job, and consequently why it’s important to be involved in that work. But his first love is the tools.
“The best part of being a lineman is knowing that you can accomplish something,” Colston said. “There’s nothing like the feeling of knowing how to fix something, fixing it, and then seeing the result when you’re done.”
Like a lot of lineworkers, Colston worked his fair share of power outages, often caused by hurricanes and other storms. While they kept him away from his family, he said there’s a lot of job satisfaction that came with the work.
“I have yet to meet a customer that said, ‘No thank you, I don’t want my power.’ Every customer I ever had from the 30-plus years I was a lineman was thankful,” Colston said. “There aren’t very many jobs where you can say that. There’s a lot of gratification from knowing that you had the skills and the ability to complete the task and turn the power back on.”
Retired Louisville Local 369 Business Manager Larry Wendler has known Colston since their days leading their respective locals. They’ve even been known to refer to each other as “brother from another mother.” Wendler said he could always reach out to Colston at the International Office if he needed guidance.
“When I had an issue, I leaned on him. I respected his wisdom,” said Wendler, who also knew Colston’s father, a member of Local 369. “He’s a true leader.”
For Wendler, Colston will be remembered as always looking out for the interests of others, especially his IBEW brothers and sisters.
“He’s a truthful, outstanding person,” Wendler said. “I can’t say enough about the person he is. He never put personal stuff first.”
In retirement, Colston said, it’s time to repay his wife for “putting up with my lineman butt.”
“It takes a special person to be married to a lineman because they know we’re not going to be there all the time,” he said.
Colston said they’ve got plans to buy a new camper and spend time enjoying the solitude and fires at as many campsites as possible.
“We’ll do a lot more things that we couldn’t do for all these years,” Colston said. “It’s time for us to travel.”
The IBEW and all it’s given him will always be close to his heart, Colston said.
“I am incredibly grateful to the IBEW for allowing me to be a voice for all my brothers and sisters in the utility industry,” he said.
Colston was awarded the Edwin D. Hill Award at this year’s Labor and Management Political Action Committee conference, held in March, for his decades of service to the utility industry on behalf of IBEW members.
On behalf of the officers, staff and members, we wish Brother Colston all the best, and a long and fulfilling retirement.
