Career longevity has come into focus recently at the Portsmouth Site, where 17 of the more than 2,000 contractor workers there have marked over 50 years of service, with one employee at 56 years.
Office of Environmental Management
September 16, 2025
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Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth (FBP) employee Robert “JR” Lyon, center, recently completed 50 years of service at the Portsmouth Site. Nuclear Operations Director Tim Poe, left, and FBP Project Director Greg Wilkett present Lyon with a 50th Anniversary Service Award.
PIKETON, Ohio — Career longevity has come into focus recently at the Portsmouth Site, where 17 of the more than 2,000 contractor workers there have marked over 50 years of service, with one employee at 56 years.
While the 17 employees have worked for a variety of contractors during their time at the U.S. Department of Energy Office of Environmental Management site, they are currently with Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth (FBP), the decontamination and demolition contractor; North Wind Dynamics (NWD), the infrastructure support services contractor; and Mid-America Conversion Services (MCS), which manages the depleted uranium hexafluoride conversion facility at the legacy nuclear site.
“The level of dedication and hard work that takes place at the site every day is truly remarkable,” Portsmouth Site Lead Jeremy Davis said. “To work at the same location for 50 years shows how much these individuals love what they do.”
Jack Galloway with Fluor-BWXT Portsmouth recently completed 50 years of service at the Portsmouth Site. Galloway was originally hired as a janitor and is now a utility distribution operator.
Jack Galloway, an FBP utility distribution operator, is one of the most recent to cross the 50-year threshold. He said he couldn’t imagine working anywhere else.
“It’s challenging, hard work, but I enjoy the people I work with,” said Galloway.
Another half-century employee is FBP’s Robert “JR” Lyon. He has been a nuclear facility manager since 2013. Lyon has worked rotating shifts in several facilities at the site for nearly four decades.
“This job has been very good to me to raise a family in southern Ohio,” Lyon said. “Now my son works here in business services. It is an honor to show him where I’ve worked and introduce him to my work family.”
From instrument apprentice to instrument and electrical mechanic with North Wind Dynamics, Mike Bower marks 50 years of service at the Portsmouth Site.
Instrument and Electrical Mechanic Mike Bower with NWD is also a member of the 50-plus-years-career club.
“One of my most memorable moments was when the plant went into cold standby in 2001. I was working on the cell floor of X-330 Process Building when the cascade was shut down,” Bower said. “The silence was deafening.”
At MCS, a couple employees have reached the 50-year mark. One of them is Operator Technician Bill Bowen.
“I was blessed to have the opportunity to start my career on the reservation 50 years ago, and I have never looked back,” he said.
Mid-America Conversion Services Instrument Maintenance Technician Paul Dutcher recently celebrated 50 years at the Portsmouth Site.
Employees who have worked more than 50 years at the Portsmouth Site include:
- Jerry Rider, FBP – 56 years
- Albert Stone, FBP – 55 years
- John Albright, FBP – 52 years
- Haden Davis, FBP – 52 years
- Johnny Duke, NWD – 52 years
- Earl Elliott, NWD – 52 years
- John Knauff, NWD – 52 years
- Bruce Royal, FBP – 52 years
- Thomas Simon, FBP – 52 years
- Robert “JR” Lyon, FBP – 51 years
- Larry Thomas, NWD – 51 years
- Bob Beaumont, NWD – 50 years
- Bill Bowen, MCS – 50 years
- Mike Bower, NWD – 50 years
- Paul Dutcher, MCS – 50 years
- Jack Galloway, FBP – 50 years
- Thomas Samples, NWD – 50 years
-Contributors: Kearney Canter, Shawn Jordan, Rachel Stroth, Michelle Teeters
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