Dale Haugen

A farm boy from Ryder – Growing up on a small family farm, Dale never dreamed of a career off the farm. “Farming was in my heart and that is truly what I wanted to do,” he says. But interest rates were rising in the 1970s and when some neighboring land came for sale at auction, Dale determined his future wasn’t on the farm. “During the oral bidding process, I could not see a path forward, and we let the land go,” he says.

Seeking a comfortable life – “During this era, many locals had worked at the power plants during construction, and they always seemed to have a comfortable life,” Dale says. That observation led him to a two-year electrical technology degree from the North Dakota State College of Science in Wahpeton and his first co-op job with the substation department at Central Power Electric Cooperative in Minot.

Early cooperative mentors – Gary Williamson, Central Power’s manager at the time, encouraged Dale to pursue more schooling. After studying electrical engineering at North Dakota State University, Wally Beyer, a family friend and then manager of Verendrye Electric Cooperative, told Dale he needed “real-life design experience” and got him work with the co-op’s consulting engineering company. Those pivotal early experiences eventually led Dale to Williams Electric Cooperative in Williston in 1981.

At MWEC – In his 43 years with Mountrail-Williams Electric Cooperative (MWEC), Dale has led the cooperative through monumental changes. He became MWEC’s first manager, when Williams and Mountrail electric cooperatives merged in 1991. And little could prepare a manager or cooperative for the Bakken oil and gas development, and the financing requirements for such a large expansion, after the turn of the millennium. MWEC grew 85 times larger in plant value and 50 times larger in revenue during Dale’s tenure as general manager. Today, MWEC’s gross revenue is more than $400 million, with plant value of $1.1 billion.

Technological advancements – From slide rulers to computers, vast technological changes in the electric industry occurred during Dale’s career. “All the computer processing that cooperatives do now, from the members’ bills to the automatic reading of meters and the actual modeling of the system for design criteria, life got easy for those young engineers!” he says. Advancements in computer technology were critical in MWEC’s buildout in the Bakken, and Dale leaned on the expertise of his friend, Vern Dosch, and National Information Solutions Cooperative to implement and adopt many new technologies.

Working for co-ops – “I must tip my hat to co-ops and their commitment to their employees! The board of directors must have treated me well, as I have committed 43 years of my life to them,” Dale says. He also gives a nod to the entire cooperative network and cooperative principle No. 6 – cooperation among cooperatives. “The ability to work with all the professional people and organizations are just phenomenal. The people structure, from NRECA to NDAREC to CFC to power suppliers, you can’t work with a better group of boards and employees,” he says.

‘Beautiful, supportive family’ – Includes his wife of 38 years, Karen, their three children and spouses, Jim (Natasha), Chelsea (Kyger) Hill and Douglas (Annamaria), and grandchildren, Hunter, Brekyn, Scotlyn, Peyton, Nehemiah, Ezra and Gloriana, all of whom Dale plans to enjoy more time with in retirement.

North Dakota beauty – You can take the boy off the farm, but you can’t take the farm out of the boy. Dale’s favorite part of North Dakota is its agriculture: “The beautiful fields of corn and small grains with the breeze blowing through, making those waves. It doesn’t get any better than this!” he says.

His parting advice – Dale has never strayed from the cooperative model of doing business. It still works, and will continue to, as long as the grassroots members stay involved, he says. “Co-ops were born in politics and could die in politics,” he warns. “Always remember your roots. Everyone is on the same team within the cooperative. Remember the owners – your members. Listen. It will all work out well for everyone – that’s the cooperative way! Patience.”

___
Mountrail-Williams Electric Cooperative members can read more about Dale in MWEC’s local pages, C1-C8, of this issue.