Stay Basin! Growth and leadership opportunities, work-life balance

If one word were to describe how Braden Fagenbush feels about Basin Electric, it is “grateful.”

He says, “I’m truly grateful for the opportunities Basin Electric has provided me.”

Fagenbush started full-time with the cooperative in 2014 at the Laramie River Station near Wheatland, Wyoming, but before that he worked for two summers at the facility as an intern. Today, he is the maintenance superintendent at Antelope Valley Station near Beulah, North Dakota.

“Basin Electric is the only place I have ever worked,” he says.

The opportunity Basin Electric has given him to quickly progress in his career is one reason he is grateful. After his internships, his journey with the cooperative began as a general laborer at Laramie River. He soon moved to storekeeper and then warehouse supervisor at the same plant before becoming maintenance superintendent of Antelope Valley and Leland Olds Station in 2023. Since November 2024, he has been superintendent only of Antelope Valley.  

Long before Fagenbush started as an intern he knew that Basin Electric provided the kind of lifestyle he wanted. He saw this up close and personal with his father, Chris Fagenbush, who has worked at Laramie River for more than two decades.

“I’m grateful to follow in my father’s footsteps working for Basin Electric,” he says. “I see what it did for me when I was a kid, and I am grateful to work for such a great cooperative now as my career.”

The work-life balance is important to Fagenbush, partly because it allows him to still be involved with his hobbies, mainly sports and coaching – things he attributes to helping him prepare for his current role.

His coaching experience includes working as assistant coach and coach of girls’ basketball at the high-school level – a passion he shares with his wife, Katrina, who is the head girls’ basketball coach at Beulah High School. He assists her on her staff.

“Coaching has taught me to deal with people, develop public speaking skills, and the ability to look ahead to see the bigger picture – to consistently look ahead while being able to remain present in the moment,” he says. “Sports is all about being part of a team, understanding our roles, and knowing what it takes for each of us to achieve the same goal. It’s coming together for something larger than yourself.” He says the same is true working at the cooperative.

Fagenbush puts his leadership skills to good use every day. He manages about 58 people, including five supervisors, and said he enjoys watching them lead and grow in their own spheres.

“The best thing is watching employees grow and come together,” he says. “I like being able to see the big picture of why we do what we do.” That is, making sure things run smoothly at the plant. “We do this for our members, giving them affordable power. I think that it is important to always keep in mind. It gives our work purpose.”

It’s a vision and a purpose he carries with him every day.

Basin Electric might be the only place Fagenbush has ever worked, but it’s only a foretaste of what is to come. He looks forward to a long and fulfilling career with Antelope Valley and Basin Electric.

“And that’s what it is,” he says, “not just a job but a career.”