Six SREPA linemen left the U.S. as volunteers to provide safety training and assistance to an electric utility in Jalapa, Guatemala, in mid-July. They returned this past week with thousands of photographs, hundreds of stories and a newfound love for family and country.

"I have been through many storms, from hurricanes Frederick to Katrina and seen a lot of things while here at Singing River," said Ronnie Cooley, "but this experience just about tops them all. It was a unique experience, and I would go back to help those people any time."

The trip was part of an ongoing effort by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association that started in 1962 to help developing countries deliver safe and reliable electric power to citizens.

SREPA has been a part of the NRECA International Foundation for many years, said Lee Hedegaard, SREPA general manager and CEO. In the past, the company has donated surplus equipment to NRECA projects overseas.

"This year we decided to step up and offer a crew," he said.

Jalapa is a rural town of about 4,000 to 5,000 people in the mountainous southeast corner of the Central American country, said Sam Jones, another crew member.

"It was beautiful," Jones said. "There are a lot of rocks. There are a lot of farmers in the mountains. It was surprising. I saw lot of corn. Sugar cane is a big crop. There were a lot of mango trees. The weather was great. It was a lot different than what we are used to here. We woke up and it was about 65 to 68 in the mornings and got up to around 75 during the day."

The weather wasn't the only thing that was different for the six linemen.

"They had a lot of festivals," Jones said. "It seemed like while we were there they had six festivals. All of the buildings seemed to be built together. It was like they started somewhere and then everything keeps building onto that one area until it is just a town."

Jones said the country is very poor and lacks many of the conveniences that Americans take for granted. Women use scrub boards to wash clothes in big water pots in the town square. Firewood is a major source of fuel for cooking and home heating. Vehicles are very small, European-style cars and trucks, but many people used motorbikes and bicycles. People also used horses and mules for transportation.

Cooley said the family-oriented people were very warm and friendly. He said he was surprised to find how oriented toward the U.S. they are.

"The little place where we stayed, it was the nicest place in town," Cooley said. "When we first got there, they were having a birthday party. The little girl was dressed in what looked like a white wedding gown. There was family there, not five or six people, but hundreds who showed up to celebrate her birthday. You're talking about 200 or 300 people showing up for this little girl's 15th birthday party. It was a coming out party, you might say. The 15th birthday is a big deal to them down there."

There appeared to be little crime, Cooley added, but many men walked around with automatic pistols on their hips. Guards and security personnel carried automatic rifles or shotguns.

"The night watchman at our hotel stood out there all night long where the cars were parked with a shotgun," Cooley said. "There were guns everywhere. I got out several times and walked the streets and never for a moment felt threatened in any way. The Pepsi truck drove around with three guys in the cab of the truck but one guy rode in the back with a pump shotgun making sure that nobody messed with the Pepsi on the truck."

Working with the Guatemalan utility crew was also an eye-opening experience.

"They have no equipment," Cooley said. "They have an old 1971 digger truck that they tried to use, but it is worn out. They have no hot work equipment. If they work on a line, they have to de-energize it. They just cut the power off to the whole town. They would give the neighborhood a warning through the radio that they were going to have a power shortage.

"The utility had no money for connectors. They twisted the wire together. We use compression sleeves. They just twisted the wire together. If they needed tape, black electrical tape, they would call dispatch and tell the lady there that they needed a roll of tape. She would go and buy one roll of tape and bring it out there to them."

Help in overcoming the language barrier came from an unexpected source.

"We started out with one interpreter," Cooley said. "Then, one of the men at the municipal had a nephew who lived in Hollywood, California. He was a boy named Chris and was 15 years old. He was down there visiting his grandmother and they asked him to come and interpret for us. The boy was a whole lot better interpreter than the older guy was. He would just follow along with us throughout the day. We worked 10-hour days, and he would interpret everything that was going on."

Asked what he missed most besides his family, Cooley had a quick answer.

"A cold Coca-Cola. They have a lot of Pepsi, and I am not a Pepsi drinker," he said. "The food I really was not used to. I like to have a hamburger and french fries every so often."

In addition to the time and expertise, the U.S. crew donated equipment and personal tools to their Guatemalan counterparts.