Irrigation Association President-Elect and Munro Companies President Katie Powell was recently named the 2026 recipient of the American Society of Irrigation Consultants Ivy Munion Langendorff Women Award. The Ivy Munion Langendorff award recognizes women who serve as role models and have made a unique or significant impact in the irrigation industry.
“I was very surprised and felt honored to be recognized,” she said.
Powell joined Munro in 2012 but has been immersed in the irrigation industry since childhood. Munro Companies is the parent company of Munro—a manufacturer of pumps, pump controls, pumping stations and related equipment for the irrigation industry—and Munro Supply, an industrial supply company serving Western Colorado and Eastern Utah. In 1965, her father and grandfather started Munro Supply, an extension of the Munro family mercantile and mining equipment businesses that began in 1900.
Munro’s consistent leadership and industry impact contributed to her earning this year’s award. Although Powell never met Munion, after learning she was chosen for the award she sought out stories about Munion. What she found resonated deeply.
“It sounds like she was a really incredible person,” Powell said.
Powell learned that Munion, like herself, wasn’t one to stay quiet on the sidelines. She engaged actively, voiced her views, and worked to open doors for others. Munion was also instrumental in advancing the industry and recognized that irrigation could be a rewarding career path for women at a time when the field didn’t always feel open or welcoming to them.
“She believed it was important to recognize women in irrigation and to open the door to other women coming into the industry,” Powell said.
That mission is personal for Powell and shows up across her work.
“I talk a lot about the importance of engaging broader audiences in irrigation careers,” she said. “There are so many wonderful careers in irrigation. I want to see more people—particularly more women—be exposed to that and feel like it’s an industry that’s open to them.”
In addition to receiving the ASIC award, she was a finalist for the Colorado Industrial Manufacturer of the Year award. She also serves on the boards of the Colorado Advanced Manufacturing Association (CAMA) and Grand Junction’s Business Incubator Center and was recently appointed to the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City’s Economic Advisory Council.
Looking ahead, Powell is excited by the technological advances reshaping irrigation, particularly innovations that improve the efficiency of both water and power use. In a region and an era where every drop matters, smarter systems and data-driven tools are critical.
But technology is only part of the story. Powell is equally energized by the way the IA and ASIC are stepping into policy conversations and engaging with elected officials.
