INL opens its doors with 70th anniversary open house

Idaho National Laboratory celebrated 70 years of world-leading nuclear energy research and development with an open house on June 22. For Kaibree Hatch and Weston Tice, the event was a highlight of their summer.

Among the more than 600 people enjoying the festivities at the Advanced Test Reactor (ATR) were Kaibree's parents, who are both INL employees. Her father, Duane, has worked as a machinist at ATR for 19 years, and in his words, “There is no better place to work than ATR." For events similar to the open house, he and his co-workers design, machine and give away trinkets for families to take home to remember their experience at ATR. Kaibree's mother, Cathy, has worked at Central Facilities Area (CFA) for the past three years and feels extremely blessed to work at INL where such diverse opportunities are presented. ​

The Hatch family has attended the past two open houses, which occurred in 2011 and 2016. At each event, Kaibree has been able to watch her dad make some cool toys, which she describes as her favorite part of the open house. “It's cool to see what my father does and see how many people he works with," she added. According to Cathy, Kaibree is her dad's biggest fan and gets “so excited" when the time comes around to spend the day at his work.

Kaibree isn't alone in her excitement for the open house. Children of all ages love to see what exactly their parents do on a day-to-day basis and explore all the different opportunities INL offers. The potential to inspire the next generation of innovators is limitless. Additionally, Cathy and Duane love events like the open house as it has allowed them to develop close relationships with their co-workers, so it is fun to have all their families come together and bond over their work. ​ ​

Since the last open house in 2016, INL has welcomed hundreds of new employees, including Weston Tice, a Planning and Financial Controls specialist at the Energy Resource Office Building (EROB). Tice, who started as an intern before joining INL full-time last year, is just one of the many employees who jumped at the opportunity to show his family where he works. His parents, Susan and Bill, flew from Bradenton, Florida, just for the open house. The chance to tour INL with his family was something he couldn't pass up. “It's really fulfilling to be able to show them where I work and what I do," he said. 

Though it wasn't much different than his son's descriptions, Weston's father, Bill, says the sheer scale of the lab is what caught him off guard the most. “It's extremely impressive, but surprising," he said. “It helps put a face to the work they're doing to improve our lives. It's eye opening and exciting to see."

Ultimately, Weston's mother, Susan, said the most remarkable feat comes, not from INL's state-of-the-art facilities or world-leading research, but from the excitement and eagerness of employees. “Everyone loves what they do. And that's clear by their enthusiasm and passion for their work. I'm very impressed by their willingness to help and answer questions. It's amazing."

With over 3,900 registered guests, the event offered employees the opportunity to give friends and family a personal tour of the lab's diverse facilities in hopes of providing insight into the day-to-day operations of INL. These included Willow Creek Building, the Center for Advanced Energy Studies, the Energy Systems Laboratory and several more. Each location provided a wide variety of educational displays and activities, including assembling a motorized toothbrush organized by the K-12 STEM group, spear throwing like the prehistoric people of Lake Terreton thanks to INL's archaeology team, and touring an Abrams M1 tank in person with the Idaho National Guard. The potential for new knowledge was limitless. 

Visitors were able to learn more about their loved ones' hard work, and how it not only contributes to the daily functions of the laboratory, but how it applies to their everyday life as well. One example of this comes from Power Town, an instructional model provided by Facilities & Site Services that demonstrated and conveyed the dangers of electricity in real-world scenarios using live voltage inside the lobby of EROB. The presenter gave specific examples of how to react to different situations involving live power, ranging from downed powerlines to interacting with electrical substations. The model made it easy for guests to visualize and understand the dangers of electricity, as well as how it pertains to their lives – something all displays strove to accomplish. ​

Also new this year for the open house came from the Radiological Control employees at ATR and Materials & Fuels Complex (MFC) who created and organized new educational activities for the younger visitors. Children of all ages were able to try on protective clothing used in various INL facilities, explore containment tents, and even perform surveys with radiological instruments. Each of the activities provided insight for visitors to better understand what INL does in a fun and meaningful way.

For Misty Benjamin, open house co-chair, being able to watch families enjoy the fun-filled day made overcoming the challenges of organizing the open house that much more gratifying. “I think it was incredible to watch the teams come together from all the facilities and from all the different groups to make the open house work," Benjamin said. “It is a complex operation, but there was so much excitement in creating a day that is fantastic for families, and also gives people the depth of what we do in an engaging way."​