Raleigh Water May 2025 Employee Newsletter

Raleigh Drinking Water Compliance Laboratory

10700 Starr Rd, Wake Forest

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

THANK YOU so much to everyone who contributed items to the employee newsletter: Mike Hughes, Kimberly Holmes - Iverson, Kathleen Jordan, Philip Joyner, Chirita Liles, Haley Page, James Sleeper, and Phoebe Trogolo If you have any items of interest that you would like to submit for the employee newsletter, please contact sarah.weisenburn@raleighnc.gov

Important HEALTH Reminder! The Annual Wellness Assessment (AWA) is now open and runs until July 31, 2025. The AWA program consists of three components:

Biometric screening

• To complete this requirement, you can have your primary care provide complete a biometric screening form. You can find the screening form in your WebMD One Portal. You can also attend a City - sponsored onsite biometric screening events – more information about when these will be hosted and how you can register is coming soon!

An online health risk assessment (HRA) questionnaire

• To complete this requirement, you will have to sign into your WebMD ONE portal.

Online Nicotine - Free Agreement (included in the HRA)

Completing the AWA requirements will make you eligible for a health insurance premium discount and provide valuable health insights.

For more information, click HERE.

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Contributed by: Kimberly Holmes - Iverson

We ’ re thrilled to congratulate Raleigh Water and Whit Wheeler, whose collaborative research with NC State University is exploring direct potable reuse as a potential solution for Raleigh's water future. This innovative approach would treat water to drinking standards and return it directly to the main supply. Researchers are currently evaluating water quality from the Neuse River Resource Recovery Facility to assess the system's viability.

Look for a feature on this exciting project in the online Summer 2025 issue of NC State's Coastwatch publication.

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Meet and Greet Assistant Director Breakfast

Contributed by: Kimberly Holmes - Iverson

Assistant Director Scott Smart recently hosted a delightful breakfast for over 150 members of the Sewer Management and Resource Recovery divisions this month. The event, held to foster camaraderie and introduce our newest Assistant Director (who started near the beginning of the year), was a resounding success! Attendees enjoyed delicious Bojangles biscuits and other breakfast items while engaging in lively fellowship, catching up with familiar faces, and meeting new colleagues. Scott warmly welcomed the entire group, taking the time to chat individually with many

employees, and demonstrating his commitment to connecting with his team.

As the breakfast concluded, a special "get to know you" video offered a fun and insightful look into some interesting facts about the new Assistant Director, adding a personal touch to the gathering. The success of this warm and welcoming event was truly a team effort, and special thanks are extended to Kathleen Jordan, Carla Meadows, Gracelyn Sanders, Marla Dalton, Courtney Perry, Patricia Creech, and Sarah Weisenburn for their invaluable contributions in organizing such a memorable occasion.

Be sure to check out the video HERE to learn more about Assistant Director Smart!

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Meet and Greet Assistant Director Breakfast

Contributed by: Kimberly Holmes - Iverson

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Public Service Recognition Week honors those who perform critical services for the community and do it with compassion and professionalism. And in honor of this, City Manager, Marchell Adams David, visited RW staff at Lake Woodard on May 7th and did a meet and greet with employees and answered questions. We appreciated her taking the time to meet with staff and hope that the employees felt that they had a good opportunity to interact with City leadership in a more relaxed and open setting too!

Click HERE to see a message from fellow City of Raleigh employees!

Raleigh Water Job Fair 3324 Lake Woodard Drive, Raleigh NC

May 16, 8:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. May 17, 10 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.

Our department welcomed 160 guests over two days to our third annual Raleigh Water Job Fair (91 on Friday and 69 on Saturday). We were able to talk to them about the open positions that we currently have and educate them about all the work that goes into making clean drinking water and collecting wastewater for the community every day. Out of the 122 responses that we received in our exit survey, ALL were complimentary of our staff and the event. We enjoy hosting this event and providing our community with information about our organization and what we do. We ’ d like to include a special THANK YOU to Haley Page, for coordinating this event again, and to all of the other staff who gave their time to assist with the planning, preparation and volunteer efforts that went into making this another successful networking and recruitment event for Raleigh Water!

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Earth Day 2025 Raleigh Water joined with others in the City of Raleigh, in partner ship with We Plant It Forward , to celebrate Earth Day. This event was an opportunity to help inform about creating a more sustainable Raleigh and a chance for our staff to connect with those in our community. There was live music, games, and activities for all ages, as well as representatives from other City departments.

Administrative Professionals Conference - April 24th

Contributed by: Chirita Liles

This conference is held every year in Winston - Salem and was sponsored by Atrium Health Wake Forest and Novant Health and the theme was “ Professionals Supporting Professionals ”.

There were 3 guest speakers, we had good food and met many other administrative professionals. Most of them were from the area but there were some from Wilmington, Greensboro, and a few other cities in North Carolina. There were about 20 vendors there showcasing apparel, home goods, paintings, and many other items. We really had a fun engaging experience and I would love to do it again next year with even more of us from Raleigh Water in attendance! (pictured above l - r: Shantia Spears, Kayla Evans, Chirita Liles)

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Sewer Maintenance

Contributed by: Phoebe Trogolo

Swapping Out Clipboards for Cornhole Games

Thank you to all the Raleigh Water sewer maintenance employees! No one could have asked for better weather for last month ’ s Raleigh Water sewer maintenance employee appreciation picnic. Crews spent the afternoon enjoying warm temperatures, blue skies, and sunshine at Anderson Point Park—and we can ’ t forget about the games (cornhole and tackle football), jumping in a bounce house, and enjoying a picnic - style lunch with good eats from 2 food trucks. We know that these operations need to be monitored 365 days a year and around the clock, and we ’ re so grateful for the crew members ’ continuous hard work, and that ’ s why we were glad we could celebrate them with a well - deserved afternoon of fun!

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Sewer Maintenance

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Sewer Maintenance

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Departmental Employee of the Year Winner!!

Martesa Webb Laboratory Science Supervisor

“ Martesa leads with intelligence, empathy, and excellence – a supervisor, mentor, and advocate who brings out the best in people and processes alike. ” With more than 20 years of service, Martesa Webb has consistently demonstrated what it means to lead with purpose, equity, and ingenuity. As laboratory science supervisor, she brings deep technical expertise, a proactive mindset, and unwavering accountability to every aspect of water quality testing and operations, even studying HVAC systems and blueprints to better manage a complex lab

construction project. Martesa ’ s collaborative approach extends across departments and municipalities, and she is a trusted regional leader known for sharing knowledge and strengthening partnerships. She fosters an inclusive, growth - focused environment where her team is supported, challenged, and empowered to lead. Martesa ’ s leadership is defined not just by her scientific knowledge, but by her compassion, humility, and ability to turn challenges into opportunities for improvement. Raleigh Water would like to CONGRATULATE Martesa on this amazing achievement and thank her for all that she brings to our organization!

KUDOS

Contributed by: James Sleeper and Philip Joyner

In April Mike Pearce was awarded employee of the month in the Meters Division. Mike has been with the Meters Division for 18 years. He has consistently been one of our department's top performers. Mike is always ready to share his experience and teach newer technicians the best ways to tackle tough jobs out in the field or volunteer for special projects. Congratulations to Mike Pearce!

(in the pic: Mike is installing a curbstop under pressure)

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Contributed by: Mike Hughes

Two EM Johnson apprentices, Kyle Restaneo and Patrick Kenny, recently completed the requirements of the 2 - year NCRWA apprenticeship program. They were both recognized at the North Carolina Rural Water Association annual conference banquet in Winston Salem, NC on May 14 that Kay Willis and I were in attendance for. Kyle Restaneo (on the left in the photo) and Patrick Kenny started as Plant Operator Apprentices on August 8, 2022 and both have their B - Surface and B - Distribution licenses. As part of the NCRWA apprenticeship program, each apprentice must have a mentor that guides and provides on the job training. Kay Willis was Patrick ’ s mentor and Mike Jones was Kyle ’ s mentor. We are very proud of what they have accomplished through the apprenticeship program and look forward to seeing what they will do next!

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Raleigh Water Team Joins Habitat for Humanity for a Day of Service

Stepping outside the day - to - day operations at Raleigh Water to work hard for a good cause. Recently, the South Raleigh operations team took a day to give back to the community by volunteer ing. The group worked with Habitat for Humanity; a nonprofit that helps families get affordable housing. While volunteering, they put the finishing touches on several houses in Knightdale. They spent the day installing windows, placing molding and cleaning up to get the houses ready to move - in. Corey Gunter, a 22 - year veteran of Raleigh Water, says one of the best parts of the

day was connecting with others in a setting outside of their usual work. Saying this about the group, "Yeah, we definitely met a couple new people. People came from NC State and one from Chapel Hill. ” According to the group, a new friend from the day was the Habitat for Humanity worksite manager Paul. (Shout out Paul! Thanks for keeping the group on track and working hard.)

When they ’ re not maintaining over 2,700 miles of sewer system, the team says it was fun to come together for a different kind of work.

Raleigh Water employee, Carter Poole, spoke about the day saying “ We go out and do just about the same thing every day and being able to do something different with the people you work with every day brings us closer. It ’ s not something that we always do together. ” Although he couldn ’ t be there that day, Raleigh Water employee, Michael Carpenter, coordinated the public service event. He thanks the volunteers and speaks to the character it shows to offer up one's time to better the community. Carpenter believes in the importance of volunteering. He hopes it shows that Raleigh Water cares beyond their daily jobs.

(cont ’ d)

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Raleigh Water Team Joins Habitat for Humanity for a Day of Service

“ I want the communities that we serve to know we do more than just maintain their infrastructure. We truly do care about the communities that we service, and we want to give back and help our neighbors as much as possible" says Carpenter. As the team gets back to protecting Raleigh's water, they hope this is just the beginning of more ways to volunteer and give back to the community.

Thank you, South Raleigh operations team!

(pictured above: Sandro Olivo, Ethan Whittington, Catherine McGinn, Craig Thatcher, Jeff Clark, David Haseman, Cameron Hester, Carter Poole, Anthony Johnson, and Corey Gunter).

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