Today we honor a legendary Central Hudson employee who recently passed away. Ernest F. “Razz” Rassman worked as a Central Hudson lineman for an astounding 58 years! He is believed to be the longest-serving employee in our company’s history, which dates back to 1900. Razz joined Central Hudson in 1947 after serving in the U.S. Navy with the Pacific Fleet during World War II. He retired from Central Hudson in 2005 at the age of 80. As his obituary so eloquently states, “he will live forever in our hearts and the power lines that dot our country side.”
“He was a great worker who loved people and was just a really good guy,” recalled Michael Englishby, who is currently a Central Hudson Director of Electric Operations and a former lineman who worked alongside Razz for many years. “The stories are endless. Everybody loved him.”
Razz, pictured here with his wife Sara at a celebration of his 55th work anniversary in 2002, had this to say at the time of that milestone:
ON HIS CAREER LONGEVITY:
“I didn’t think I’d be here this long. But in those days, you got married, bought a house, raised a family … and before I knew it, 55 years had passed!”
ON CHANGING TIMES:
“The use of machinery has made the biggest difference between how things are done today and how they were done back then. Instead of digging holes by hand, we use construction equipment. It’s better in a lot of ways, but sometimes I think things were simpler years ago.”
ON CONTINUING TO WORK (at age 77 at the time):
“I guess I never grew up. I like working with everyone here and being with the younger crowd. I have friends who say I’m crazy for working, but I look at them, and they’re just sitting around. I don’t want to do that.”
An obituary published in the The Harlem Valley News is available at http://
