Water Hero: Gail Ball

Gail Ball

Name: Gail Ball
System: Lunenburg Fire District #1
Job Title: Clerk/Treasurer and Delinquent Account Manager

Gail retired at the end of January 2025 after 13 years as the Clerk/Treasurer of Lunenburg Fire District #1.

Gail Ball

Tell us about your career in the water industry.

My husband, Buddy Ball, has been our Water System Operator since 1992, so I have heard him talk about the water issues, water leaks, and what it takes to run our small water system over these years. I had been reinforcing my resume by taking a Quick Books computerized accounting to make my Associates Degree stronger. I decided to put my resume in for the position of Clerk/Treasurer when I heard that we were going to lose our beloved Clerk/Treasurer due to illness.

What is your favorite part of the job? Least favorite?

We have been living in Lunenburg since 1977 and I know a lot of people in town. I used to love it when customers would stop by my office just to say hello and chat a minute. I would keep dog treats for their dogs. I knew all their dog’s names.

I felt bad for people when they got behind on their payments and they got a little cranky about it. I understood and would offer a payment agreement plan to help them get back on track.

Do you have a favorite story or memory?

Paul Sestito (who was a Water Systems Specialist at Vermont Rural Water until a few months ago) was helping me with the USDA-Rural Development loan application in my office at the Lunenburg Store. Paul didn’t know that my office got frequent visits from the dogs in town. One boarder collie loudly came rushing into my office to get her treat and this scared Paul out of his skin. I got a big chuckle out of that.

What’s your proudest moment of your career?

I found out that Lunenburg Fire District #2 in Gilman was having trouble with their delinquency rate. I asked if I could help out and over the next four years I brought in $137,000. They were able to do some much-needed repairs and upgrades to their system. I was also successful in bringing down the delinquency rate for our own LFD#1 in Lunenburg.

Buddy Ball and Gail Ball at Vermont Rural Water’s 2022 Conference.

How have you seen the water industry change over the years?

We just finished our system upgrade of installing two new wells. This was a process that took ten years to complete. We ended up going with the State Revolving Fund as they offered an interest-free loan.

There are more hoops from the state agencies to jump through and the costs have gone up significantly.

We had a little extra money so we are buying water meters for 100 customers. These meters will track the water usage at customer’s homes and will even help with leak detection. They can be read using a smartphone, so we don’t have to get out of the car to read a meter. The new meters will also alert us when they are being tampered by customers. The old meters are no longer readable as the lenses have clouded over and some meters have been destroyed by customers.

This can be a hard job that gets little thanks. What kept you motivated?

As I said before, the people that we have known for decades have been very supportive of us.

I started complimenting people for their help during water leaks by putting it in the Quarterly Newsletter for everyone to read. Since then, customers go out walking their neighborhoods looking for running water when we have a new leak. They take pride in being the one who finds it first. This certainly takes a lot of pressure off from Buddy (Water System Operator) as he knows people are helping him.

Do you have any advice for new workers in the water industry?

You won’t learn it all in one day, so keep your ears open.  From my perspective this job is not just bookkeeping. Sometimes I know there is a water leak by the cost of the light bill.

There are a lot of rules and regulations from the State to follow. It’s really a hard job but we can get through it. I have contacted Vermont Rural Water Association’s staff when I have questions.

How do you plan to spend your retirement?

Hopefully doing all those things I didn’t have time for. Maybe even clean out a few closets. Resting!!

Is there anything else you’d like to share?

I hope that in the future, the new people can keep the momentum going and be able to add a few new improvements along the way!

I do want to thank the board for keeping a sense of humor in the hard times. It helped me to keep going. Thanks guys. And thanks to the community as well, you’re the best!

Thank you, Gail, and to all of Vermont’s water and wastewater heroes who perform essential services to protect the health and environment of our communities!

Do you know a Water Hero who should be featured here? Email info@vtruralwater.org