Human resources Dynamite comes in a small package. Every company issue landed on the desk of small-statured but mighty-minded Dorothy Cauwels, who, like several others, was part of the company from the very beginning. She came from the communications world, where everything was very structured, to the fast pace of serving the utility industry, where everything is an emergency. Over the years, she served as typist, bid submitter, drug testing program manager, human resources, risk manager, insurance and claims manager, safety advisor, ofce manager, vice president, and counselor to the executives—to name a just a few. One of the things she enjoyed most was sitting and talking with the executives while they confded in each other to discuss day-to-day operations and family and life events. A mother of a daughter and four boys, she understood the rough and tumble way men think, and treated them like family—sometimes with tough love. In the challenging construction environment, where women weren’t always welcomed as equals, Dorothy had the authority to tell it straight. Even when they didn’t like what she had to say, they respected her and took her advice. One time when a member of the management team demanded she treat an employee in a way that she felt was unfair, she stood up to him. And when he wouldn’t budge, she told him, “My job is human resources. If I can’t be here for the people, then I won’t be here at all!” and stormed out of the building. Every employee knew Dorothy, and many still call her Mom, something she is very proud of. When someone got hurt, sick, or fell upon hard times, Dorothy always made time in her day to call them, regardless of what was on fre at the moment. It wasn’t in the job description, but she felt everyone was an important part of her life, and she truly cared. She shared an ofce with Scott Ingalls for the last several years of her career, and he nicknamed her Roomie. She loved laughing and joking with him about work and life and recalls sharing tears behind closed doors on more than one occasion. Her respect for Scott is deep. She has always been amazed at how someone who started his career as a runner could grow the company into what it is today, while caring more for his employees than himself. 140 The Next Hundred Years There was not a dry eye during Scott’s speech for Dorothy’s retirement in the winter of 2019. However, that was not goodbye. She showed up to work the next day and continued to work 10-hour shifts for another year and a half. When I asked her what kept her from retiring, she shrugged her shoulders and said, “Ugh, I have no one to take over insurance, and I care about the company so much, this is just too important to walk away from.” She also admitted it was hard for her to go because everyone was family to her. She began to teach me the ins and outs of the insurance world, and, when she felt comfortable in my abilities, she began scaling back hours. She is still on call today to work through complicated issues and to catch up on how everyone is doing.
