McKenzie Electric welcomes new staff
McKenzie Electric would like to welcome Matt Hanson as the new chief operating officer, Colt Bohn, interim safety manager, and Ryan Zastoupil as an apprentice lineman.
Matt Hanson – Chief Operating Officer
As the new Chief Operating Officer, Matt will oversee the engineering and operating procedures of the cooperative, ensuring McKenzie Electric is running on all cylinders.
Matt is no novice when it comes to utility work and co-op culture, and as a second-generation utility and REC employee, he is eager to bring his experience to western North Dakota. Along with Hanson, making the move to the prairies and buttes of the mid-west are his wife of 16 years, 13-year-old son; nine-year-old daughter and a highly anticipated newborn girl due in July. Matt says the true baby of the family however is their five-year-old chocolate lab Maggie.
When asked what the most fulfilling aspect of working for a cooperative is, Matt answered without a pause that running a business with the purpose of benefitting the membership is what drew him to the cooperative world. As a family man himself, he also said the family orientated structure is what he enjoys most about his new role.
Colt Bohn – Interim Safety Manager
Many of our co-op employees have families waiting for them to come home after a long day. It is our goal to ensure that always happens, which is why McKenzie Electric’s safety manager’s job is so important.
Colt Bohn joins MEC after eight years of law enforcement experience in the Bismarck and Watford City area, and three years working in the oilfield. As a newcomer to the cooperative family, Colt believes “Concern For Community” is the most meaningful out of the seven cooperative principles. While clearly not the only important principle of the list, how co-ops provide safe and reliable power, jobs, and community enrichment proves that we are a community focused business.
Colt and his family of five have busy schedules. When he has some free time, he enjoys hunting, golfing and raising his four daughters.
Ryan Zastoupil – Apprentice Lineman
At the core of every REC is a line crew that keeps power moving through the lines, rain or shine, snow and wind, they face it all. Joining McKenzie Electric’s line crew is Ryan Zastoupil, a 2019 Killdeer, ND graduate who has just recently completed Bismarck State College’s Lineworker program to become an apprentice lineman.
Growing up in Killdeer, Ryan was a four-sport athlete playing football, basketball, golf and track and field. That team focused mentality carries forward into the everyday tasks of a line crew such as MEC’s making sure everyone goes home safe at the end of the day. The comradery and tight-knit base are what he enjoys the most from his first months at the cooperative. When asked which co-op principle means the most to him, he chose “Concern for Community” because in his personal life he always tries to put others first. When he’s not setting poles or restoring outages Ryan likes to hunt and fish or spend a weekend in Van Hook at his cabin.