Washington Power Crew Seeks Owner of Ortley Sign

A Washington electric crew hopes to find the owner of a sign that provided them with inspiration as they helped restore power in Ortley Beach following Superstorm Sandy. 

The sign, which reads "This is What It's All About," was recovered in November by a Bonneville Power Administration crew helping to repair a JCP&L substation there, said Foreman Thomas Miller. 

That sign, which the crew hung on a pole near the work site they walked by each day, "became our job motto while on site," Miller said. Now, he and his crew want to see that the sign is returned to its rightful owner.

"All I know is that the sign meant something to us during our short stay, but most likely means much more to who it belongs to," he said.

Below the slogan is a smaller inscription of "Pete 4-18-38," which Miller said may suggest that the sign has some sentimental value.

Miller and his crew were among the 106 employees and contractors sent by BPA to the New Jersey area — along with 72 pieces of heavy equipment — on Nov. 3 to help restore power after the storm, according to the utility. 

Crews were flown from Washington on military aircraft. Miller describes the scene at the Ortley substation he repaired in a BPA news release.

"The substation had been pretty well washed out — the big thing was the amount of debris in the substation itself," Miller said. "The water from the storm surge had pushed the front fence down and this huge amount of debris floated in there and got trapped. Photo albums, surfboards, underwear — you name it, it had floated into that substation."

Anyone with information about the sign's origins is welcome to post information in the comments section here, email Patch Local Editor Gregory Kyriakakis or contact Miller at his email address.