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Worked at Louisville Water since 2007
Having a job where you spend most of your workday alone isn’t for everyone, but Louisville Water Metering Specialist Terence Langford actually prefers it.
“I just control my own pace. That’s why I like being by myself. I’m more comfortable that way. I’m somewhat of a loner.”
Langford came to Louisville Water nearly 17 years ago through a program partnership with the Louisville Urban League.
“I started out bottling water at Crescent Hill (Treatment Plant). They liked my work and I was always on time.
They asked me to fill out an application for internal hiring and I got the job.”
Louisville Water no longer bottles Pure Tap and now Langford is a metering specialist where he does everything from turning a customer’s water service on or off, specialty inspections, and yes, the unpleasant job of installing plugs or locks on meters which prevent the flow of water into the customer’s home or business.
“When a customer’s well overdue (with their payment), they’ll send me out to put a plug into the meter or just put a lock on it. I prefer the locks though because it’s a lot quicker.”
As you can imagine, that can mean a tense environment some days.
“A few months ago, I had to do a plug. I was there two weeks prior. I ended up coming back a few weeks later, but I had to have his (the customer) car moved. The tow truck company came out and moved his car, but he got angry. That’s the most craziness I’ve experienced since I’ve been here.”
Langford stayed calm and collected and worked with the tow truck driver to move the car.
“I just de-escalated the situation. I kept my distance just as I told him to keep his. I did my job and got out of there.”
It’s a job Langford takes seriously. Langford is like many employees who choose to make a long career at Louisville Water. He says John Huber, the president who was here when he started, set a great example.
“I stayed this long because of John Huber and the appreciation he showed us as employees. I love what I do. I’m still on time to this day, never been late.”
Supervisor of Operations 1 Chris Harris says there’s no question you can rely on Langford to get the job done.
“Working with Terence, I called him ‘the legend’ because he was always here before anyone and would go out and get his work done and then some. He’d return to leave and I would see the results of his high work performance, but I wouldn’t see him!”
When he’s not working, Langford enjoys spending time with his wife, grandkids, and watching sports.
