PERU — Ruth Huntington, a Peru native, has worked hard to prove she can hold her own in a career dominated by men.
Huntington, 57, has worked across the nation as an oiler and operator on natural gas pipelines since 1998.
She has traveled to 11 states with her husband, Tim, a Turner native, constructing natural gas pipelines. She comes home a few weeks each year.
“For me being away from home and family is the hardest part,” she said. “You miss out on a lot of birthday parties, family reunions and weddings.”
Huntington is a grandmother of four and has two children who live in Maine.
The Huntingtons travel from job to job living in their camper and visiting states such as Wyoming, Tennessee and Florida.
“We have two homes, our house here in Turner, and our 43-foot fifth wheel camper,” she said.
Huntington said she first started working at the Portland Natural Gas Transmission System in Bethel in 1998.
“I just kept going up to the yard and asking for work and they finally hired me,” she said.
Both Huntington and her husband are union employees with the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 4 from Boston.
Huntington said she has worked hard to prove she was capable of doing the job.
“I’ve run pumps, dragged hoses, thrown skids,” she said. “I just fit in as one of the guys and they don’t tiptoe around me.”
Huntington said the career is not for the faint of heart. She generally works 60 to 100 hours a week.
“It’s long hours and a lot of sacrifices,” she said. “I know a lot of men who end up leaving the job because they can’t do it.”
Huntington said she loves her career and the chance to be outside all day. She also said she believes the physical labor keeps her healthy. However, she said, standing in steel-toe boots takes its toll on her joints.
“I have rheumatoid arthritis and by the end of the day I have trouble standing,” she said.
Huntington said at times reception of pipeline workers coming to towns can be negative.
“You never know if towns will support you or not,” she said. “Mostly it’s because people don’t understand the business.”
She said fears existed about explosions and gas leaking into wells. At one town Huntington traveled to there were signs on every lawn, she said.
“They said things like ‘no pipeline here,'” she said.
Huntington said in one town a campground owner said his regular rate was $230 but he was going to charge the couple $500 a month because he didn’t like the pipeline or its crew.
“He finally just flat out refused to let us stay there,” she said.
Huntington said work was booming in Pennsylvania and places to stay were hard to come by. She also said she had heard rumors about new projects coming to Maine.
She said overall she’s thankful for the job.
“Pipe lining is a good life and we both love it,” she said. “We are able to help our family a lot. My grandchildren are my life and without them I couldn’t breath.”
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- Ruth Huntington, a Peru native, operates a backhoe on a natural gas pipeline in New York. Huntington has been working as an oiler and operator since 1998. Her job allows her to travel the country with her husband, Tim, who is also an operator and a native of Turner.
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- Ruth and Tim Huntington, Maine natives, work for the International Union of Operating Engineers Local 4 out of Boston and travel across the nation building natural gas pipelines. Ruth said the career is not for the faint of heart and there are long hours and numerous sacrifices.
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- Tim Huntington stands inside a bucket on a backhoe making sure a ditch is straight before a natural gas pipeline is laid down in New York. His wife, Ruth, works along side him as they travel across the country.
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