Jimmy Mathis represents something you just can’t replace with a manual or a training class.
Jimmy Mathis, a Southern Pine Electric construction supervisor, sipped on a Diet Coke and ate a chocolate chip granola bar while he drove to his first job site of the day.
Mathis, 71, said he usually eats a morning sausage biscuit with his Diet Coke, but not today.
Before heading to the job, Mathis stopped at a gas station convenience store to meet with his 5-man line crew and pick up a quick breakfast.
Mathis and his crew — attached to Southern Pine’s Brandon office — were headed to an area just southeast of Puckett to replace a power pole.
For Mathis, the power pole replacement is something he considers “a little job.”
“Little jobs are boring. Most people prefer the little jobs. I like rephasing with a big crew,” Mathis said.
Still, as a construction supervisor, the job is to oversee his linemen crew on their assigned task and to ensure all the work is done safely and efficiently. Although he doesn’t climb into buckets anymore, Mathis is still the man with the plan for the line.
Years ago, Mathis was a young lineman who worked with his own supervisor.
Jimmy Mathis represents something you just can’t replace with a manual or a training class.
Mathis is, if not the longest serving Mississippi electric cooperative lineman still working today, one of the longest serving co-op linemen in the state.
Mathis started working at Southern Pine in 1977 in the right-of-way department. Then he briefly worked as a groundman. From 1980 to 1992, Mathis worked as a lineman. He became a supervisor in 1992.
April is Lineman Appreciation Month. Mathis has been on the job for more than 45 years.
“Jimmy Mathis represents something you just can’t replace with a manual or a training class. When you’ve got a lineman with that many years on the line, he brings a depth of practical knowledge that only comes from seeing just about everything a storm, a pole line, or a piece of equipment can throw at you,” Drummonds McAlpin, president and CEO of Southern Pine Electric, said.
“Having someone like him on the crew means that experience is being passed down every single day, helping the next generation of linemen be safety-focused, confident, and committed to serving our members.”
Mathis, who was born and raised in Taylorsville, grew up around Southern Pine Electric and linemen.
His father, Evon, was a lineman at Southern Pine. Both his grandfathers worked at Southern Pine — one was a truck driver and the other was a groundman. He also had an uncle that was a lineman at Southern Pine.
Mathis has an 18-year-old grandson, Brante, who is thinking about becoming a lineman.
“He can’t make up his mind. My advice to him is, it’s a hard job. You have to be real committed. It’s not a 9-5 job. You always have to be ready to go,” Mathis said.
A job
Mathis and his crew arrived at the scene and scoped out the details.
It turned out, the existing pole, which was rickety and rotting, had a fiber or cable line and telephone line on it. That meant the crew couldn’t replace it. Instead, they installed a new power pole right next to the older pole.
Using a digger truck, a giant, corkscrew-shaped digger tool drove a hole right next to the existing pole for the new power pole.
Back when Mathis started out, linemen and groundmen dug the holes themselves with their hands and shovels.
While the five linemen worked on getting the hole and new pole ready, Mathis walked around the site and eyed everything at the location.
By the time the linemen were up high in buckets attaching the power lines to the pole, Mathis was looking up to scan what was happening.
As a supervisor, Mathis is there to answer questions.
“The younger the linemen, the more questions you get,” Mathis said.
Parker Fulton, who has been with Southern Pine for only five months, was transferred to Mathis’s crew two weeks before.
“He has so much knowledge, it’s insane. I feel safe around him. And he teaches us every little thing.” Fulton said Mathis — who almost always has a smile on his face — has a personality that is sort of “goofy.”
“He’s serious but also fun to be around,” Fulton said.
Later in the day, Mathis said of Fulton, “I think he’s going to be just fine. He’s willing to do the work.”
Cooper Turner, 26, is one of the senior members of the crew. He has worked with Mathis for five years.
“Jimmy has forgotten more about linework than most people have learned in their entire careers,” Turner said.
“Everything I know about being a lineman, I learned from Jimmy. He’s taught me to take a step back, look at the whole picture before making an important decision.”
Safety is always the No. 1 priority at a Jimmy Mathis job site, Turner said.
“As far as I know, no one on any of Jimmy’s crews has ever been injured,” Turner said.
Everything I know about being a lineman, I learned from Jimmy. He’s taught me to take a step back, look at the whole picture before making an important decision.
Experience
Mathis said linemen have to work in tough conditions.
“You have to deal with the weather. It can be super hot or deathly cold. It’s hard work, but you can live with it,” Mathis said.
Mathis said he’d rather work in the heat.
“Man, if you’re hanging up on that pole, that wind can really get you.”
Mathis has a desk and office, but he hardly spends anytime inside.
“I can’t work in an office. After five minutes, I feel like I’m going crazy. I like to be outside and on the road.”
Even in his off time, Mathis prefers to be outside hunting, fishing, or working in the yard.
Because of his time with Southern Pine, Mathis said he’s had opportunities to move up to positions that don’t involve site work.
“Those aren’t for me. A lot of supervisors have moved up over the years. But I like what I do.”
Wes Lee, Mathis’s district supservisor, said he loves to have Mathis and his expertise in the field.
“When we are in mutual aid situations, it’s great to have Jimmy because he can get out there to make sure everything is done safely, and he can figure out whatever problems there are,” Lee said.
When asked about retirement, Mathis said he’s thought about it.
“I think about it sometimes. I don’t know. Maybe. People get bored to death after they retire,” Mathis said.
