True Blue Spotlight on a Problem-Solver
BY LYNN LIPINSKI
LAST YEAR, RON JOHNSON marked a quarter
century working for Santa Margarita Water
District (SMWD) in Orange County, California.
The milestone nearly matches another significant
achievement in his life — his sobriety.
Those two achievements coupled with a well-earned repu-tation
for embracing challenges inspire many who work with
Johnson, including SMWD General Manager Dan Ferons. “Ron is
one of my heroes; he is smart, humble and a great person to work
with,” Ferons said.
Early Days
Originally from Tampa, Florida, Johnson began working for
SMWD in 1995 as an operator-in-training (OIT) at the Oso Creek
Water Reclamation Plant. Though he had worked as a chemical
engineer for about 10 years following his graduation from the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), a substance use
problem had brought him low. He wanted to hit reset, even if it
meant starting at the bottom all over again, which is what hap-pened
when he received the OIT job assignment through the re-habilitation
facility where he was working through the steps of
recovery.
OITs at SMWD and other water systems quickly learn that
no job is too menial as they learn the trade and study for operator
exams. Johnson remembers hours spent weeding, painting and
doing other facility housekeeping chores in addition to his duties
44 SOURCE spring 2021
PROFILE OF AN OPERATOR
Photo courtesy of Santa Margarita Water District.
helping with the water system operations. “It wasn’t exactly fun,
but I motivated myself to do it,” he said.
It was a far cry from the high expectations his mother had
set for him as an African American child growing up in Florida
at a time when local racial segregation laws were slowly being re-moved.
A self-proclaimed “nerdy kid” who checked out a stack of
books from library every weekend, Johnson had skipped grades
in elementary school and graduated from high school as valedic-torian
at age 16. Teachers and counselors saw potential in him as
well, putting his name forward for special summer school ses-sions
at acclaimed Phillips Academy Andover in Massachusetts
and later an undergraduate degree at MIT.
At SMWD, Johnson may have been overqualified in terms of
experience and education, but serving in this role with willing
heart and body was part of his recovery. He liked that SMWD pro-vided
a very valuable service for the community and that through
his contributions, he made sure that portions of the plant worked.
He was making a difference, however small.
Earning a Reputation as Mr. Fix-It
When the Oso Creek Plant shut down temporarily because
the reservoir was full, Johnson shifted his time between Chiquita
Water Reclamation Plant and the Nichols Water Reclamation
Plant, a small package plant with add-on filtration that SMWD
operates under contract with Quest Diagnostics. It was there that
he began to demonstrate a penchant for problem-solving and
innovation.
Back then, the Nichols plant didn’t always run smoothly. Tur-bidity
levels frequently climbed beyond specification, resulting in
middle-of-the-night calls to the standby operator to get the filtra-tion
system back in gear. Johnson started doing some research to
find a solution: daily backwashing of the filters. Coming out of
the state’s lengthy drought ending in 1992, the practice of back-washing
the filters had been seen as a waste of water. Johnson’s
idea for backwashing and changing out the filter media used was
implemented and soon the late-night calls stopped.
Johnson’s ability to find answers to tough challenges ranged
from reducing flooding at 3A Water Reclamation Plant, which sat
near a storm drain that backed up every time it rained, to working
with engineer consultants to solve a nitrification issue at Nichols,
to minimizing odors at Chiquita. Like untangling a knot, unlock-ing
the mysteries of why something isn’t working well provides
Johnson with great satisfaction. “I’m proudest of my reputation as
a problem-solver,” he said.
Service from the Heart
Service to others is also a point of pride for Johnson and a key
component of his recovery, he is careful to note.
During both the routine and the challenging times, John-son
also gleans support and meaning from his wife Ty and
their two children, Jordan and Alanna. He lights up when he
talks about Jordan’s interest in stock market investing and his
studies at Saddleback College, as well as Alanna’s artistry and
interest in social justice as she completes her senior year in
high school.
“What God enables us to do for others is what keeps us going,”