KUA lineman retires after 39 years on the job

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KUA lineman retires after 39 years on the job

Around Osceola

Wednesday, 31 March 2010 00:00

Jon Bruce “J.B.” Cole, a line crew supervisor for Kissimmee Utility Authority, retired March 26 after 39 years of service to the electric utility.
When Cole joined the utility as a lineman helper in 1970 Richard Nixon was president, Simon and Garfunkel’s “Bridge Over Troubled Water” was the number one song, Boeing’s 747 jet entered commercial service, the Gremlin and Pinto cars were introduced and the cost of a first class postage stamp was just six cents.
During his nearly four decades at the utility, Cole worked his way up through the ranks to lineman first class in 1981, foreman in 1985 and finally in 1998 to his current position, line crew supervisor.
During his career Cole witnessed some of the most significant chapters in the utility’s history, including the unveiling of KUA’s first modern energy control center in 1979, the creation of a separate utility authority in 1985 and the opening of the utility’s Cane Island Power Park in 1995.
Born in Gardner, Mass., Cole is a graduate of Orlando’s Edgewater High School and served in the U.S. Navy during the Vietnam War era.
Founded in 1901, KUA (www.kua.com) is Florida's sixth largest community-owned utility providing electric and telecommunication services to 62,000 customers in Osceola County.