Rekindling long-ago customer connection a career highlight for employee
A quarter century ago, our construction crews were a main attraction for children spending their summers at Kenosee Provincial Park.
SaskEnergy employees worked for several summers to extend gas service to cabins in the area in the late 1990s.
“Some kids, you couldn’t get rid of them. They’re pointing and looking; the parents want to go, but the kids want to stay and see us work,” says Dale Staudt, a Crew Lead with our southern Saskatchewan Construction team.
“We would stop and explain what we were doing and show them. We’d stand back with the parent and watch one of our guys dig. For a small kid, you dig a hole and it seems like something amazing.”
One child, Cody Hoffmann, appreciated the experience so much that he drew a couple of pictures of the SaskEnergy construction equipment. His mom also sent our crew a photo of the boy next to the skid steer. Dale kept the images all these years.
Fast forward to summer 2024. Dale was on a job site in July when he met someone whose last name rang a bell — for good reason: Turns out, she was Cody’s wife!
She knew all about Cody’s experience meeting our crews as a five-year-old that summer.
“She says he talks about that all the time,” says Dale. “There are so many kids over the years in different projects, you wonder if they even care or do they even remember? We really did touch this kid’s life.”
Dale and Cody began exchanging emails. Cody vividly recalls our crews working at Kenosee during his childhood summers, and the chance to get up close with the construction equipment. He says he spent hours watching Dale’s crew work, moving dirt and rocks, and digging to make way for new distribution lines.
“I remember how friendly and patient the SaskEnergy workers were. This was my first exposure to the world of construction and engineering, and it sparked an interest that has stayed with me ever since,” says Cody, who now works as an environmental scientist.
In a four-decade career in construction with SaskEnergy, Dale has worked across Saskatchewan.
“There’s lots of moving around; you meet lots of people over the years,” says Dale.
This is one reason his reunion with Cody was so special. Dale has received and kept letters of thanks from other customers throughout his career, but it has been meaningful to know that his work inspired a child.
Cody also appreciates being able to reconnect with Dale. Says Cody, “Thank you, SaskEnergy, for not only ensuring our home’s safety but also for leaving a lasting positive impact on a young mind. That day in 1999 was more than just a routine job; it was an unforgettable core memory that shaped my interests and appreciation for machinery and engineering.”
