HOULTON, Maine — A change in leadership has taken place at one of Houlton’s oldest businesses.
Greg Sherman took over as general manager for Houlton Water Company on Feb. 22. Sherman becomes just the fifth general manager in the company’s 115-year history. He succeeds John Clark, who served as the general manager from 1984-2017.
“People keep telling me I have some really big shoes to fill, and they are right,” Sherman said. “After doing this job for the past month and a half, I can tell you, John made this job look easy, but it is not. He cared so much for this institution and this community.”
ONE OF SHIRETOWN’S OLDEST BUSINESSES — Since 1880 the Houlton Water Company has been serving customers in town and surrounding area — first with water, later with sewer and now with electricity services. HWC employees serving under the leadership of General Manager Paul Coleman in 1957 gathered for this group photo in front of the Bangor Street headquarters as part of the town’s huge sesquicentennial celebration. (Contributed)
Sherman said Clark has been kind enough to remain on-call for any pressing needs that may arise.
“I have been working pretty close with John for the past six years, but even then you realize how much it truly is that you don’t know,’ Sherman said. “I will say I have had to take advantage of John’s generosity and call him a couple of times.”
Sherman joined the HWC in July 1998, starting out as an accountant. He worked his way up to comptroller, and then was named assistant general manager. His new role as general manager will involve greater managerial skills, as well as staying on top of an ever-changing industry.
“Things are constantly changing and there are legislative mandates that come down,” Sherman said. “Occasionally I will have to spend some time in Augusta meeting with the Public Utilities Commission. There is always something going on because of the three departments.”
The Houlton Water Company was formed in 1880 and started out as a privately-owned corporation that solely dealt with water distribution. The sewer department was added in 1887, but was not formally merged with HWC until 1938. The electricity portion came on board in 1908.
B.B. McIntyre was the first GM serving from 1902-33; followed by Norman Mullen (1933-53) and Paul Coleman (1953-84).
Sherman said he was incredibly blessed with the group of employees that work for HWC. “We have such a wonderful staff,” he said. “We have a lot of longtime employees who possess a wealth of knowledge.”
“What is unique about the Houlton Water Company today is we are a stock-owned company,” Sherman said. “We have a wonderful board of directors and they have been very supportive for us over the years.”
Sherman said his goal is to see HWC continue to provide reliable, affordable services to the community.
“We have one of the lowest [electricity] rates in the state, and our water and sewer rates are quite competitive too,” Sherman said. “We will always look for ways to improve.”
Three phrases can be found in the company’s conference room, which are words Sherman said he hopes to live up to. Those phrases are — safety first, quality second, quantity third.
“We are always looking out for the safety of our employees,” he explained. “We want our employees to go home at night. We also want to put out a quality product. We try to get as much done as we can, as well as you can, and as safe as you can.”
Sherman resides in Hodgdon with his wife Angela. They have five children — Hannah, Tyler, Nick, Alex and Logan.
