The April Dispatch 2023

Safety Anniversaries

Congratulations to the following locations who celebrated March Safety Anniversaries:

March 1 - Boise Valley Railroad (ID) - 2 years

March 8 - Jacksonville Port Terminal Railroad (FL) - 6 years

March 9 - Brighton Switching (CO) - 2 years

March 10 - Baton Rouge Dedicated Terminal (LA) - 2 years

March 10 - Bayway Dedicated Terminal (NJ) - 9 years

March 10 - Wood River Transload Terminal (IL) - 1 year

March 11 - Houston Texas Terminals (TX) - 1 year

March 12 - Ithaca Central Railroad (NY) (PA) - 2 years

March 16 - Grand Rivers Mobile Repair (KY) - 3 years

March 23 - HMH Breakbulk (TX) - 1 year

March 24 - Omaha Repair and Maintenance Terminal (NE) - 1 year

Scholarship Opportunity

The Southwest Association of Rail Shippers (SWARS) is now accepting scholarship applications from undergraduate college students and college-bound high school seniors.

To be considered for a $1,000 scholarship, students must be in good academic standing and reside in Arizona, Arkansas, Southern California, Colorado, Kansas, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas, or Utah. Applications must be submitted by Thursday, April 27. Visit the SWARS website for more information or to apply.

Revealing the Newest Winter FREEZE Winners

Congratulations to the newest winners of the Winter FREEZE (Following Rules Every Day Ensures Zero Errors) safety award. These team members earn a $200 cash bonus for spotting a hazard, reporting a near-miss incident, or submitting a safety suggestion.

“Safety is at the center of everything we do at Watco,” said SVP of Environmental Health and Safety Travis Herod. “Our team members do a good job of reporting near-miss incidents and safety suggestions. Thank you for your contributions, and way to Own It!”

Name: Chase Manley

Location: Dore Transload Terminal (ND)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: Manley used a strap stick and determined that the product exceeded the trailer’s maximum load size.

Solution: Manley used Stop Work Authority. Manley’s supervisor then reached out to the customer for the correct strapping chart for the tanker.

Name: Anthony Hipes

Location: Sauget Cahokia Marine Terminal (IL)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: In order for team members to avoid putting their hands too close to the conveyor, Hipes suggested mounting eye bolts to a conveyor frame.

Solution: Eye bolts will be welded onto the conveyor. Until then, a Job Safety Analysis has been updated for team members to review.

Name: Howard Noland

Location: New Martinsville Dedicated Terminal (WV)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: Noland discovered an electrical conduit was broken off at the fitting. Wires were also exposed.

Solution: An electrician repaired the conduit and wiring.

Name: Matt Spade

Location: Wisconsin & Southern Railroad (WI)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: Spade spoke up after noticing the cables on a bridge walkway were loose. He also noticed the surface of the bridge walkway was uneven, creating a tripping hazard.

Solution: The team tightened the cables, changed ties, and set the ballast retainer extensions to the correct height.

Name: Eddie Mendoza

Location: Palouse River & Coulee City Railroad - Condon (OR)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: While inspecting the track inside a customer’s facility, Mendoza found wide-gauge track in a crossing. This could potentially result in a derailment.

Solution: This crossing was taken out of service until repairs can be made.

Name: Cory Agawa

Location: Agawa Canyon Railroad (Canada)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: Agawa observed that a drainage trench was unmarked. The snow-covered trench could have resulted in a potential injury.

Solution: This trench has been filled with rock to eliminate hazards.

Name: Timothy Keegan and Matthew Allen

Location: Blue Ridge Southern Railroad (NC)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: While operating a locomotive, Keegan and Allen spotted deputies walking in the foul of the main line. They sounded the horn to warn the deputies and brought the train to a stop, avoiding a potential catastrophe.

Solution: The deputies admitted to not contacting Dispatch before walking near the tracks. The railroad connected them to rail safety resources.

Name: Erika Chavira

Location: Freeport Industrial Rail (TX)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: Chavira suggested installing street signs on a couple of double railroad crossings that advise drivers to not stop on tracks.

Solution: The team is considering adding these signs in the future.

Name: James Napier

Location: Pittsburg Repair and Maintenance Terminal (KS)

Safety Suggestion/Near Miss: While switching railcars, Napier stopped movement. He found the switch was improperly aligned due to tampering.

Solution: Conductors and engineers now provide visual confirmation of proper switch alignments prior to movements.

Name: Milton Gray

Location: Coffeyville Repair and Maintenance Terminal (KS)

Safety Suggestion: Gray noticed a top transfer tie was loose on a railcar.

Solution: Gray removed the loose rivet. He also lowered the transfer tie to the ground in order to prevent it from falling on anyone. Members of management used Gray’s observations to remind the team to be aware and take caution.

Celebrating Watco’s Difference Makers

It’s time to reveal the first Be the Difference winners of 2023. Congratulations to Aaron Porter, Rhett Summar, Joshua Kramer, Leah Wood, and Michael Brown. These five winners will receive $250. The cash prize is new to this awards program starting this year.

“Join me in congratulating these team members for stepping up and making a difference,” said CEO Dan Smith. “I’m proud of each of their accomplishments and you should be too. Team, let’s continue to make great things happen this year by owning it every day.”

Josh Kramer

Fox Valley & Lake Superior Rail System (WI)

Leah Woods

Watco Pricing

Overland Park (KS)

One Watco Award - Given to an individual or group of team members whose teamwork generates an exceptional result for a Watco customer.

These two team members recently traveled from out of state to bring relief to the Austin Western Railroad. While there, Aaron Porter helped oversee railcar repairs while Rhett Summar worked as trainmaster. Check out how they used their skill sets to make a difference.

Michael Brown

Freeport Industrial Rail (TX)

Extra Mile Award - Given to an individual or a group of team members who go above and beyond the call of duty at work or in the community.

Ask anyone at the Fox Valley and Lake Superior Rail System who best represents and lives Watco’s values and the answer is the same: Conductor/Engineer Josh Kramer. Find out how he goes above and beyond to help his team every day.

Pricing Manager Leah Woods always looks for a way to help, even if it falls outside of her job responsibilities. Read more about how she positively contributes to the Watco team.

Safe Performance Award - Given to an individual or group of team members who take action to ensure safety for fellow team members, customers, suppliers, or property.

Train Service Engineer Michael Brown always trusts his intuition. And it’s what prompted him to speak up after noticing a small amount of liquid leaking from a parked railcar waiting to go outbound. Keep reading the rest of his story here

Recipients: Aaron Porter Louisiana Southern Railroad

Rhett Summar

Stillwater Central Railroad (OK)

Newest Phase of GeoConnect Is Now Live

Watco GeoConnect – the company’s web-based resource for finding Watco locations and the services they offer – has just expanded its functionality.

In recent days, the company made Phase II live. With this newest phase, in addition to locating options for railcar storage (a service launched in December 2022), customers or prospective customers can find sites that offer transloading, material handling, and storage for their commodities and products. They can use a map and filters to see available transport modes including Class I railroad connectivity, storage capability, and other location details.

Watco has offered these services all along but is now putting them together in an accessible, map-oriented customer tool.

“Customers looking for railcar transloading, barge loading and unloading, material handling and cargo storage can use the site to locate the best Watco option,” said Marc Massoglia, SVP of sales for terminals and ports. “Customers have been using the railcar storage search engine and are going to like these added features, as well.”

Throughout the site, there are easy ways to connect with Watco. Massoglia said: “We always want customers to reach out to us. We offer so many services throughout our network of ports and terminals that it’s difficult to fit it all in an easy-to-use search engine. We are constantly developing new capabilities at our terminals to meet customers’ needs. We often deploy capital, equipment, and manpower to customize logistics and material handling solutions for our customers’ requirements. If there’s a service that they’re not seeing on the drop-down list, give us a call. We’ve got them covered.”

The site address is watco.com/GeoConnect, and there is also a link directly from the watco.com home page. As shown on the site, the next phases will show Watco’s available premier sites (established locations) and industrial development sites (greenfield development).

Watco Team Comes Together for a Good Cause

Team members at the Texas Coastal Bend Railroad (TCBR) recently rolled up their sleeves for a good cause. They joined 2,500 other volunteers on a Saturday in February to pick up trash at the Padre Island National Seashore.

Local nonprofit Friends of Padre led this community-wide volunteer opportunity. When this event came to the attention of TCBR’s Team Safety & Improvement Committee (TSIC) members, they knew they wanted to get involved.

TSIC leader and Conductor/Engineer Mike Hanna said, “We’ve been looking for ways to get involved since the TCBR started up last year. This opportunity seemed like a great way for the team to build relationships with the community.”

The efforts of the four TCBR team members and the other volunteers helped the nonprofit collect 40 tons of trash across 32 miles of beach in one day.

TCBR General Manager Darl Farris said, “It’s exciting and impressive what these team members helped accomplish in just one day. I am proud of them for their involvement.”

Volunteers representing the TCBR include Conductor Fabian Garcia, Conductors/Engineers Mike Hanna and Ernesto Sanchez, and Trainmaster Jesse Luna.

New Intranet Centralizes Resources

Recently, Watco provided team members with a new intranet site that centralizes frequently used links. Watco Insider brings together links to resources like team member handbooks and the team member discount list as well as the links for ordering Watco Gear, printing business cards, and nominating a teammate for a Be the Difference award.

Here’s an easy-to-remember url that you can bookmark: watco.com/Insider. You can also find Watco Insider at go.watco.com.

← Look for the Watco Insider tile.

KO Railroad Honors Retirees

After a combined 70 years of railroading, Track Inspector Don Brau and Track Foreman Willis Iverson are retiring from the Kansas & Oklahoma (KO) railroad. But their legacy lives on through their work and the team members they’ve mentored.

Brau left last month, after 30 years on the line. He became a railroader when Union Pacific operated his portion of the railroad in western Kansas. He stayed in Scott City when it became the Central Kansas Railway (CKR), and then joined the KO when Watco took over operations in 2001.

As a track inspector, Brau spent his days ensuring the line was in the best shape to carry grain and other commodities.

“I really enjoyed my career. I’m an outdoors person, and it allowed me to be out there while doing my job,” Brau says. “It always felt like I was doing something important, making sure we could serve customers safely and without interruption.”

After overseeing the portion of the KO that enters Colorado, Brau plans to spend more time there now. Ever the outdoorsman, looks forward to camping and fishing in the Rockies.

“I got to do what I enjoy for 30 years, now I get time to do what I love,” says Brau. “It’s been a good ride.”

Iverson also started on his section of the KO before Watco began operating it. The Southern Pacific (SP) was his first employer on the railroad in 1981. That wasn’t his original plan, though.

“I had college scholarships to play football and there was NFL talk,” says Iverson. “Those didn’t work out. But when that happened, my dad said to come work for the railroad.”

He started as a production supervisor for SP in 1981 and became a track laborer in 1983. Iverson has been a track foreman on the line since 1993. Through the CKR and Watco buyouts, he was a constant for customers and team members, regardless of the operator.

“As a second-generation railroader, I know my dad had a hell of a work ethic,” Iverson says. “ He was my mentor. Being able to mentor younger team members and share my knowledge has been joyous. It’s not about the applause, it’s about the cause.”

Iverson’s first plan for retirement is to cook, which is a family tradition as well.

“I’ve been surrounded by great cooks: my grandmother, mom, and eight sisters, and dad. I’ve been smoking meat since I was 8 or 9. Aside from that, I’m ready to go fishing and spend time with my family, especially the five grandkids,” says Iverson. KO Roadmaster Steven Morgan appreciates their contributions during their time on the railroad.

“It’s been great having each of them on either end of the KO. Don was my rock out west and Willis in the east,” Morgan said. “Both will be missed but have done their best to pass their knowledge along. I just hope they have fun, because they’ve earned it.”

The KO team held a retirement party for Brau and Iverson in late February and gifted them each a smoker and pizza oven attachment for them.

Left - Willis Iverson, right - Don Brau

Want Some Free Money?

That’s what you’ll receive if you participate in Watco’s Health Reimbursement Account (HRA) or Health Savings Account (HSA), and you take advantage of the HealthCare Bluebook tool.

If you’re not yet using Healthcare Bluebook, it’s easy. Start by downloading the Bluebook app to your phone. When asked for a mobile code, use “Watco.” Or, on your desktop, visit go.watco.com and select the NueSynergy tile. From there, you’ll find a link to Healthcare Bluebook.

Use the Healthcare Bluebook search feature to look up procedures. You can also look up doctors and facilities. Bluebook will show you price information for your area. If you select a Fair Price (green) option, you’ll save on out-of-pocket expenses and could earn additional HSA or HRA dollars from Watco.

Besides choosing a fair price option, if the facility is also in network, it can lead to additional rewards.

Reward money is placed in your HSA or HRA account. It typically happens within a month but might be up to three months after a procedure.

Graduation Announcements

The school year’s end is quickly approaching, and many family members of the Watco team will be crossing stages to receive their diplomas.

Watco would like to acknowledge their hard work and show how proud we are of all graduates from our families by listing them in the June edition of The Dispatch.

If you would like to have your graduate’s information listed, please use this link to fill out a simple form so we can recognize your graduating family members.

SIHRA Reminder: Turn in Your Receipts

Attention, Spousal Incentive Health Reimbursement Account (SIHRA) participants: Remember, you must turn in documentation showing proof of services paid for with your Watco debit card. Failure to provide within 90 days may result in the deactivation of the debit card. Visit go.watco.com to find the tiles for NueSynergy and BenefitFocus.

NueSynergy - Select this tile to upload documentation. Each time the debit card is used, provide NeuSynergy with an EOB (Explanation of Benefits) from your insurance.

BenefitFocus - For information about SIHRA, select this tile. Then, on the Benefits portal page, you’ll find a SIHRA drop-down menu.

Birth Announcements

Cooper Austin Byrd

Tonya Holmes announces the birth of her grandson, Cooper Austin Byrd, born on March 1, 2023. Cooper is the son of Russell Taylor and Brianna Byrd. He weighed 7 pounds, 4 ounces, and was 19 inches long.

Tonya works as a customer service representative at the Willis Transload Terminal (TBT) in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

Thomas William James

Ben and Jessica James announce the birth of their son, Thomas William James, born on December 8, 2022. Thomas weighed 7 pounds, 10 ounces, and was 20.5 inches long.

Thomas was welcomed home by his brothers Jackson, 5, and Louis, 4.

Jessica is a revenue account specialist at the Pittsburg, Kansas, office.

Please share your birth announcements

To submit your new arrival send a photo and information to marketing@watco.com

1 Year:

Team Member Anniversaries

Congratulations to the following team members celebrating April anniversaries:

Hugo Aguilar, Marisa Aguirre, Chris Allen, Kyle Alling, Lindsay

Ambeault, Terry Archibald, Kaleb Biffar, Brennan Bloedel, Erik Boi, Stanley Callahan, Erin Carter, Roberto Chastain, David Copeland, Michael Cyhan, Eli Demmer, Rafael Diaz, Roger

Diotte, Isaac Gallardo, Billy

Golden, Thomas Gomez, Issac

Guerra, Steven Haygood, Kimberly

Hersey, Logan Holmes, Matthew

Hoobler, James Horner, Wyatt

Horton, Lees John , Rhiannon

Lamb, Austin Lawless, Gisela

Martinez, Kaitlin Marvine, Wyatt

Matschke, Thomas McCalpin, Jamison McCrary, Christopher

Mckinney, Austin McMichael, Shannon McMullan, Aidan

McNamara, Russell Mouton, Rodrigo Munoz, Johnathon

Noonan, Brandon Overby, Bryan Paraspolo, Tyler Parkinson, Kandyce Peeples, Gloria Pineda, Courtney Randall, Kyle Reilly, Jerry

Rhoads, Julill Rivera, Scott Roop, Phillip Sosa, JC Stapleton, Michael

Stern, Daniel Sweeny, Robert

Sweere, James Taylor, Andrew

Toni, Shaun Vela, George Villalon, Marcus Weenig, Matthew

Wiggins, Tyler Wilcox, James

Winters, Simon Overall, Jason

Meyer, Zoe Rix, Bezuidenhout

Christiaan, Michael McLaughlin, Caleb Levy, Cameron Page, Kenneth Hammat

2 Years:

Victor Abilez, John Baker, Dylan

Barbee, Bryce Barto, Leonardo

Borghi, Loren Bradford, Floyd

Brown, Jourden Casey, Tony

Cesinger, Austyn Choate,

Brandon Deane, Rodney Dennis, Jeremy Dill, Amanda Douglas, John Frueh, Nicole Fuqua, Christian Gokey, Kevin Hall, Coley Hatter, Wes Logan, Justin Mahr, Ryan Martin, Eduardo Martinez, Gregorio Mijares, Armando Montes, Javier Moreno, Orlando Nalls, Brandon Perkins, Wilson Ponce, Gary Radulski, Thomas Robertson, Shelia Stice, Norman Taylor, John Ward, Gregory White, Brandon Willis, Morgan Wycoff, Russell Gallagher, Darwin Marsh, Jason Eather

3 Years: Jose Alonzo, Phillip Balthazor, William Brasher, David Dougherty, Leo Durnen, Scott Fritz, Luis Garza, Rafael Gutierrez, Marcos Hernandez, Nicholas Hyche, Anselmo Jurado Ulloa, John Lankford, Wayne Matthews, Gregory Miner, Jose Najera, Pedro Najera, Edison Najera Rodriguez, Francisco Pineda, Oscar Rubio, Brennan Sanderford, Steven Shields, Mark Souza, Talon Teton, Jose Torres, Alfredo Vazquez, Keith Wilson

4 Years: Klayton Beck, Ryan Calderon, James Crisman, Nolan Crowe, Frank Galati, Zachary Grimes, Matthew Heppler, Keston Higgins, Joseph Holley, Thomas Holmes, Samantha Howard, Corina Kallenbach, Manuel Loya, Tad Mayfield, Cody Mcgee, Will Myers, Torrance Nettles, Robert Pearce, Frank Pryor, Derrick Reeves, Alina Robles, Xavier Rollins, Phillip

Vasquez, Adam Vogt, Cody Vrana, Winston Watson, Kevin Wright, Ami Yonts

5 Years: Christina Berry, Taylor Brewer, Danielle Bushore, Esmeralda Carrizales, Justin Combs, Anthony Dellasega, Jonathan Dochniak, Gary Henry, Stephanie Hickey, Christopher Hunt, Noe Ibarra, Gilbert Jasso, Joel Johnson, Brandon Landelius, Dominque Lewis, Falconer-Brown Lindsay , Alex Myers, Miguel Ornelas, Brian Orr, Julie Ortiz, Jesus Pacheco, Nathaniel Pellerin, Travis Pinkerton, Delbert Reece, Ruben Ross, Roberto Salamanca, Jesus Sanchez, Jessica Sutton, Misty Sweeney, Brent Taylor, Chad VanSickle, Wasyli Harasymuik

6 Years: Jarret Borjas, Lance Cullen, Veronica Davis, Lacey Dawes, James Dunbar, Trevor Elliott, Cameron Garner, Michael Janda, Brent Lamaster, Stephen Lazzari, William Long, Roland Mitchell, Jennifer Prasko, Thomas Reinhardt, Dennis Sepulvado, Jimmy Sharpe Jr, Sean Sipes, Brian Warren

7 Years:

David Ault, Brian Baugher, David Dust, Matthew Gibson, Jeremy Lee, Richard Morgan, Cody Reed, Christopher Salazar, Joseph White, Bunga Putri

8 Years:

Ryan Bernd, Kenneth Brown, Shane Cover, Juan Garza, Daniel Hooper, Justin Johnson, Eric Kipp,

Team Member Anniversaries

Shannon Kondracki, Eric Larson, Anand Narine, Zachary Shelton, Dhanraj Singh, Tommy Smith, Renivick Wilkins, Fred Williams

9 Years: Marcus Blumer, Eric Cummins, Alfie Hutchinson, Jaden Jacobs, Kersy Johnson, David McIntosh, Donna Moore, Theodore Nicholson, Michael Porter, Chad Stacy, Aaron Tanner, Adam York

10 Years: Michael Crosslin, Justin Denton, John Honaker, Devan Lynch, Jacob Nance, Mark Perry, Kyle Ratliff, Bill Rollins, Steven Schadler, Noey Sistos, Robert Sohmer, Chase Upchurch, Nicholas Wayman, Kenneth Potts

11 Years:

Scott Ayers, Aaron Greene, Stefan Holcomb, William King, James Lathum, Joseph Mays, Jeff Mitchell, Michael Mulnix, Patrick Stout, Andrew Thompson, Mark Wells, Tyrus White, Jeremy Williams, Tracy Wright, Peter Anderson

12 Years: Mark Adams, Joshua Altis, Christa Coates, Douglas Delehoy, Allen Hasty, Brian Hickerson, Shaun

Hines, Christopher Kachmar, Dustin Rhodes, Donald Robert, Megan Wilson

13 Years: Hayley Becker, Randall Bennett, Kevin Crespo, Anthony Hoyte, Jackie Ogden, Rachael Peterson, David Riley, Kevin Roth, Owen Schulz, Andrew Smith

14 Years:

Angela Bunker, Joseph Grupczynski, Mark Moorlag, Manuel Rhysia

15 Years:

Carl Elrod, Chris Haddow, Robert Hurda, Joe Lopez, Jose Martinez, Arnoldo Sandoval, Eric Smith

16 Years:

Terrance Foster, Rebekah Garner, Danny Rodriguez

17 Years:

Marshall Blakley, Erika Chavira, Shellee Currier, Timothy Dunn, Cody Gilliland, Christopher Preuc

18 Years:

John Bell, Jerad Brunskill, Travis Fellers, Brian Fox, Claudia Gedeon, Timothy Hurse, Richard Moser, Jesus Rodriguez, Jessica Seelinger, Tracie VanBecelaere, David Witzack

19 Years: Jeffery Greenwood, Gina Lambert, Jason Nix

21 Years: Lisa Butts, John Galloway, Kenneth Sauter

23 Years: William Kyzer, Byron Marshall, Ernest Palmer

24 Years: Marvin Ellis

25 Years: James Crider, Stacey Hurda

26 Years: Sherry Denn

27 Years: Kenneth Barber

28 Years: Aaron Byle

33 Years: Dennis Phelps

34 Years: Dwight Browning

40 Years: James Strawn