All bags were packed and ready to go by 4:15 a.m. this morning. And boy, were there a lot of them! In addition to a personal suitcase, each lineman is traveling with a “drag bag” and a humanitarian suitcase. The drag bags are filled with work equipment the crews will need to bring electricity to Buena Vista, while the humanitarian suitcases are filled with items such as winter hats, shoes, school supplies and toys that were collected for the villagers by Michigan co-op employees. All together, the 10-person team is traveling with 30 bags weighing in at 1,500 pounds!

Checking in at the airport with a large group and a whole lot of luggage is no easy task, but the process went as smoothly as possible with the help of Dawn Coon and Laurie Millen, administrative professionals from Wolverine Power Cooperative. The airport was packed and time was tight as the clock ticked toward the 6:00 a.m. flight. Getting everyone through security came down to the wire, but the group boarded the plane and departed on-time.