Entergy WIN at Pilgrim Station Recruit New Members, Receive Project Suggestions at Safety Day
Entergy U.S. Women in Nuclear (WIN) at Pilgrim Station had a stand-out booth at September’s Safety Day that displayed WIN’s mission and focus areas, as well as safety tips for women.
We also solicited suggestions from employees for WIN Projects, with ideas ranging from supporting our local high school robotic program to developing a scholarship program.
The day also focused on recruiting new members, and we welcome our 11 new WIN members!
A raffle was held to draw one name from the new members who signed up for WIN and one name from the suggestion box.
Earlier in the month, Entergy WIN at Pilgrim Station gathered together for a rare photo opportunity.
Entergy WIN Rocks the Debate on Vermont Yankee Relicensing
Renewing the operating license at Vermont Yankee will require the approval of the state legislature, something no other state requires. Not surprisingly, the Vermont Yankee vote is now a major political topic. With the next election for Vermont governor less than a year away, every candidate has taken a stand on relicensing Vermont Yankee.
The public, however, knows very little about how nuclear plants operate. For many years, anti-nuclear activist have sent letters to the local Vermont newspapers to spread their rhetoric with little response from knowledgeable workers in the nuclear energy industry. The people who work at Vermont Yankee are passionate about the industry and strive full-time for safety and excellence. Now, in the wake of the Vermont Yankee relicensing vote, the employees want to educate the people of Vermont about the economic and environmental benefits of nuclear power and the values that make Vermont Yankee an excellent candidate for a 20-year license renewal.
To contribute to this statewide debate, members of Entergy's Women in Nuclear at Vermont Yankee combined with our North American-Young Generation in Nuclear colleagues at VY and requested training from VY Communications and Government Affairs on public outreach. With the re-licensing vote coming up in the next legislative session, these two groups wanted to make a difference by educating the public about the benefits of having safe, reliable power from Vermont Yankee through 2032.
Anyone reading the Vermont papers over the last month will have seen a big difference from the days when only anti-nuclear voices were heard. The site WIN organization has encouraged employees to write letters to the editor and full-length editorial commentaries that appear in daily and weekly newspapers all around the state. Letters from WIN and NA-YGN also have sparked a series of letters from everyday Vermonters who also support Vermont Yankee's continued operation.
“Women in Nuclear has done a excellent job encouraging employees to write convincing, persuasive articles. These letters are clearly educating the public about the benefits of nuclear power and enhancing our side of the debate,” said Brian Cosgrove, manager of governmental affairs at Vermont Yankee. “We have already seen that this initiative is making a difference in public perception.”
“At first our goal was 25 letters in the papers and we had more than 40 in the first month” said Entergy WIN site representative Ellen Cota. “Employees continued to be interested in writing more letters and keeping the letter writing campaign alive. I have people e-mail me or stop to ask me about writing a letter almost daily.”
With the current momentum, the campaign to educate the public about nuclear power will continue to bring a positive, thoughtful balance to the debate on Vermont's energy future.
WIN-PPL Susquehanna recently participated in the Healthy Woman event, sponsored by Healthy Woman Advisory Board of Berwick Hospital. WIN members distributed information on plant operations, the proposed Bell Bend nuclear plant and physical fitness trails available at the company's environmental preserves. Members also provided information about the nuclear engineering technology degree program at the local community college. Approximately 85 women from the surrounding area attended the event.
The local chapter of Women in Nuclear conducted its fifth annual general meeting on Nov. 20. The accomplishments of 2009 were reviewed during the meeting, and new officers were elected. Susan Downs was elected vice president, Nicole Atherholt was elected treasurer, and Marilyn Felock will be the new secretary. Victoria Dennis will continue in her role as president.
The Susquehanna chapter of Women in Nuclear collected donations and supplies this summer to provide 56 backpacks to three women's shelters in the area. Members collected almost twice as many backpacks as last year, allowing each shelter to receive nearly 20 backpacks filled with school supplies, enough for nearly all of the children in each shelter this year. Each backpack was sponsored by an employee or department of the company and specifically designed for a particular age and gender. There were backpacks for girls and boys from preschoolers to high school seniors, each filled with school supplies, as well as some personal items or a toy. The shelters were extremely grateful for the donations.
Children and grandchildren of PPL employees attended the Youth and Nuclear Power Day sponsored by the Susquehanna chapter of Women in Nuclear, an event that gave the children a peek into the world of nuclear power and careers unique to this field. The day’s activities, geared toward teenagers, included a demonstration by security as well as an opportunity to become familiar with the officers' equipment and the OSCAR van used for emergency radiation monitoring. There were also demonstrations in the Instruments and Controls lab and at the control room simulator. Additionally, several engineers from the site discussed college, co-ops and careers in engineering. The children also enjoyed tours of the nuclear plant's perimeter and the site for the proposed Bell Bend nuclear plant.
For almost a month, Entergy WIN at Grand Gulf Nuclear Station collected food via donation boxes located throughout the plant. Employees brought in canned goods, dried beans, rice and packaged meals to be donated to the needy. “We are giving the food to several organizations, including Christian Chapel Church Food Pantry in Port Gibson, the food pantry in Bovina, Good Shepherd Community Center and Food Pantry in Vicksburg and the food pantry in Fayette,” said Entergy WIN Vice President Dianne Gibson, senior technical consultant.
