LIGHTS OUT! LEOPOLD FAMILY AT LOGGERHEADS WITH ELECTRIC COMPANY

Reed's two sons were doing homework by the light of this kerosene lantern until a friend loaned the family an electric generator.

LEOPOLD -- Sunset means different activities for different people, but for nearly everyone it means flipping light switches to the "on" position.

But not for the Reed family. Harold Reed, and his two sons, Travis, 13, and Justin, 10, have been living in a mobile home without electricity or running water for the last three months, and for them sunset usually means lighting the family lantern and eating dinner from the local restaurant.

The family improvises well, but the lack of power is telling. A portable water tank set on a hill provides the family with water and a propane tank fuels the gas stove and heater. But the lack of refrigeration means no perishables can be purchased, and leftovers from the meals Reed occasionally cooks have to be thrown away.

The family recently sold their home in Grassy and made plans to build a house on land they owned in Leopold. When the new owners needed to move into the Grassy house earlier than expected, Harold Reed moved a mobile home to his Leopold property temporarily and began digging the basement of his new home.

That's when his problems began. Reed, who said he's been a customer of the Black River Electric Cooperative for 29 years, thought he'd have no problem getting the company to run a line to his property to supply his mobile home and later, his house, with electricity.

He was wrong. Black River, a locally operated cooperative which supplies electricity to rural customers, told Reed they couldn't supply his property with electricity unless he had or was in the process of getting running water and a septic system. If this criteria isn't met, the customer must pay the cost of building the line, which in Reed's case meant coming up with $2,608.11 to supply electricity to the mobile home or $5,074 if he wanted electricity extended to the building site.

"They do this to keep people from putting a trailer up and staying six months or so then pulling up and leaving, but I told them they've got a wrong policy," Reed said. "I can understand the policy, but I also think you should check your customer out just like you do when you go to the bank for a loan. I'm a disabled veteran and I've been doing business with them for 29 years -- I'm going to be here and I'll pay my bills."

Reed said his excellent credit history with the company and good character should have been enough for the company. If nothing else, he said, they should have considered his school-aged children.

"I'm a Christian and I don't get upset too easily, but I'm going to do everything in my power to fight for my boys," he said. "My boys are not going to go hungry and they're not going to go without because I'm going to fight for them."

Black River general manager John Farris said the company's refusal to build the electric line without cost to Reed had nothing to do with character and everything to do with commitment. The majority of customers realize the policy is there to keep the company's costs down, he said; those who only want a temporary connection are usually willing to pay the costs associated with that impermanence.

"The bottom line is he just needs to make the commitment," Farris said. "The money we spend to build lines comes from our members, so we have to be careful how we spend it. Mobile homes don't stay very long, so we're very careful with mobile homes about the service, which is why we ask for the permanency requirements."

Farris said his company is trying to work with Reed to get electricity to the property; employees have visited the family twice in the last week to work out the details necessary to get power to the home. If Reed would show proof that he plans to stay at the property -- namely, signed contracts for the water and sewer work -- he could get power in as little as three weeks, he said.

"If he gets contracts, we can certainly offer him a better deal," he said. "This is not the kind of thing we're happy to have either, but I think eventually we'll see this settled."

Reed said his word and the work that he's already completed on his house should be enough proof for the company. He said he believes in paying his bills on time and buying within his budget, but he doesn't want to pay for something that would otherwise be done free of charge.