City of Ketchikan had initiated an effort to study the feasibiity of financing and constructing a hydroelectric project, the Swan Lake Hydroelectric Project.  It was not long after I assumed the role of Superintendent that the City, due to the cost, significance, and magnitude of the work effort required to support the Swan Lake Hydroelectric Project, decided to create the position of Manager of the Ketchikan Public Utilities reporting directly to the City Council.  Upon being asked, I agreed to accept the position; a role that set the stage for two major events in which God intervened to help.  The first event had to do with rain.

It was the summer of 1981 and the rainy season, which lasts from late July through the end of June, was approaching (joke; except for a short period during the month of July, it rains year-round, every day).  Ketchikan has an average annual rainfall of 144 inches of rain; something which Pat and I, to our chagrin, failed to recognize when we chose to move to Ketchikan :-).  As a side note, our son, Nathaniel, was born in May of that year to make us a family of five (Pat, Myself, Gabriel, Misty, and Nathaniel).  But back to the point: rain was very important to Ketchikan as it was the source of water for Ketchikan Lakes from which Ketchikan drew its potable water as well as water for its firefighting system.  Ketchikan Lakes was also the source for Ketchikan’s major hydroelectric generating station that supplied electric power to the City and its residents.

One day, as my executive secretary and I were returning to the office from a meeting, the Holy Spirit moved within me and I turned to her and said: “we are not going to get the rain this year” and said no more.  I knew it was God moving through me again; similar to the time when he moved me to throw the rock described in the story “13 – The Spirit of God” and when he spoke through me with the dance instructor at the Arthur Murray dance studio as described in the story “22 – A vision from God of the hitchhiking dance instructor“.  Now a lack of rain would not be a minor event to Ketchikan and I moved immediately to take steps to reduce its effect.

On arriving back in the office, I picked up the phone and issued an instruction to the operators of the Ketchikan Lakes Hydroelectric Station to reduce the generation from that plant to 50% of its normal output until further notice.  Now this was no small event as every kilowatt of generation not generated by the Ketchikan Lakes generating station had to be replaced through the use of diesel generators at a cost of two to three times the cost of the power generated by Ketchikan Lakes.  This additional cost would be passed on to the electric ratepayers through the use of a diesel fuel surcharge and was not something those ratepayers would appreciate.  The impact of the decision to cut the generation from Ketchikan Lakes did have a significant impact on the next, and the following several month’s, electric utility bills nevertheless, I instructed the plant’s operators to maintain the 50% reduction until further notice.  Within the following two months, the lack of rainfall was already evident and my explanation to the City Council and the Public as to the need for the cutback was sufficient.

Before precipitation levels returned to normal the following year, Ketchikan had received approximately 50% of its normal rainfall for that year and the Ketchikan Lakes water level had approached the minimum level necessary to support its potable water and firefighting needs.  But the bottom line is that we made it and that was entirely due to God’s intervention in forewarning me and my willingness to act on that warning; a good ending.  Speaking of interventions and hydroelectric generating stations, the Holy Spirit had something to say about the Swan Lake Hydroelectric Project the City wanted to pursue and that’s the second major event described on the next page: “28 – God provides a room full of money!”.