GREAT FALLS — Ayden Miller collects old power pole insulators, the glass pieces used on power poles to help protect electric lines. His collection started around May 2024, during a family camping trip near Monarch around the time of a snowstorm.
(WATCH: 10-year-old future lineman gets surprise visit from NorthWestern Energy)
As crews responded to downed power lines in the area, Ayden said his grandmother spotted something shiny on the ground.
“She said, ‘Hey, go see, it looks like a pan,’” Ayden explained. “And then I’m like, ‘Grandma, it’s one of those things that goes on top of power poles.’”
Now, he says he has too many to count.
The collection is more than a hobby for Ayden. He wants to be a lineman one day, and even has a small power line setup in his backyard.
The surprise visit started after Ayden’s favorite NorthWestern Energy water bottle was accidentally left on his dad’s tailgate.
“It fell off while he was driving to the store and got run over,” Ayden said.
His mom reached out to NorthWestern Energy to see if the company could help replace it. Shane Etzwiler, NorthWestern Energy’s community relations manager, said once they learned Ayden wanted to be a lineman and collected insulators, the plan grew.
“It just kind of started developing and rolling into this big thing that we wanted to do for him,” Etzwiler said.
On Friday morning, Ayden set some of his insulators out in the front yard after his dad joked that maybe a lineman would notice them.
What Ayden did not know was that NorthWestern Energy was already on the way.
The team showed up with new water bottles, old insulators and a lineman to show Ayden around the truck.
“Anytime we’ve got a young person that wants to become a lineman, yeah, we thought we’d kind of make it a big surprise for them,” Etzwiler said.
Ayden said he was not expecting the visit.
“Yes, I actually was very surprised,” he said.
His collection will soon be shared beyond his front yard. Next month, Ayden plans to display some of his insulators at a national insulator convention at the Helena Fairgrounds.
“I’m just going to be displaying all my stuff,” Ayden said.
