Each year at the ElectriCities Annual Conference, we recognize individuals for their outstanding contributions to public power.
At the 2024 conference:
- Linda Story from Granite Falls received the Lifetime Achievement Award.
- Jackie Rushing from Concord received the Distinguished Service Award.
- Mariana Greene from New River Light and Power received the Rising Star Award.
Let’s meet the 2024 Public Power Lifetime Achievement Award recipient, Linda Story.
First, a bit about the award. The Public Power Lifetime Achievement Award recognizes sustained long-term outstanding leadership, public power service, innovation, and creativity.
Enter Linda Story.
When we talk about someone being a go-getter, that can sometimes be a little negative—maybe bringing up stories of them throwing elbows and knocking people out of the way. But not Linda Story.
She’s the best kind of go-getter: Someone who does the work with a fierce compassion and respect for others that matches her unstoppable drive.
Randy McCaslin, who’s a long-time High Point city leader and who served as chairman of ElectriCities’ board last year, met Linda when he was an undergrad at Appalachian State.
As part of a class project, he got to visit Granite Falls. Linda was the town clerk there at the time, handling everything, Randy said.
Even during that brief visit as a college kid, Randy could see that Linda was exceptional. As she became interim town manager of Granite Falls in 1981 and then town manager in 1982, and Randy went into local government in nearby Hickory, his first impression of her never changed.
Randy isn’t alone in seeing Linda’s excellence.
Everybody we found—town employees, council members, former and current Granite Falls mayors and managers, the ElectriCities board—raves when Linda Story’s name comes up.
They talk about her having star quality and being a steady force.
They talk about her being firm and sticking to her guns, while also being friendly and professional.
They say she’s always worked well with employees of all types and with people of all types.
There’s no pretense with Linda. What you see is what you get. And it turns out, you get a lot.
Linda was one of the first female town managers in the state.
Current mayor of Granite Falls, Dr. Caryl Burns, grew through the ranks along with Linda. Like others, Mayor Burns saw that spark in Linda early on, saying she did her work with absolute excellence.
Mayor Burns said Linda was persistent and would hold her ground while keeping a smile on her face, no matter who she was talking to. She was patient beyond belief and cool as a cucumber.
She tenaciously pursued and secured grants to ensure the town could continue providing the best services to its citizens.
Barry Hayes worked with Linda during his 14 years on the town council and 24 years as mayor. He said Linda didn’t whitewash anything. If the council voted to raise rates, she would explain why to citizens in a way that everyone could understand.
In a small town that provides all the services Granite Falls does, there’s a lot to manage, and Linda did it tremendously. Along with being a good manager herself, she hired well—a trait that’s especially valuable in a public power community.
Small towns are full of small-town business owners and people who have been here all their lives. As Barry said, if you get on their bad side, your time as a town leader will be limited. But in all his years on council and as mayor, he never heard a business owner have anything but positive experiences to share about Linda.
As Mayor Burns said, “When you see someone who is super great at what they’re doing, you watch them because you learn from them.”
We’re sure there have been plenty of people watching and learning from the way Linda Story has supported and continues to support her community and public power.
Congratulations, Linda. You are truly an inspiration and an incredible role model for all of us. Thank you for your years of dedicated service.
