When rural communities stop voting, those who get elected won’t reflect their voice. The Co-ops Vote program through the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) aims to reverse the decline of rural voters by encouraging co-op member-owners to get to the polls. At the CONNECT 2016 conference, Rachel Johnson, member relations manager at Cherryland gave a presentation on how to get cooperatives more involved [...]
Broadband in America has gone from being a luxury to a necessity for full participation in today’s global economy and society. Unfortunately, a digital divide exists where rural citizens lag behind their urban counterparts in broadband access, speeds and capacity. Midwest Energy Cooperative has been expanding access to high speed internet to its members in rural southwest Michigan by leveraging fiber assets used for [...]
Unseasonably warm and humid weather led to an outbreak of storms that swept through the entire Upper Peninsula. At about 6 a.m., Thursday July 21 a storm hit Ontonagon, with devastating 90 mph straight-line winds, accompanied by lightning and heavy rain. Storm damage included many downed trees (including several on homes), broken poles and wires. Overall, six substations and 4200 members were out of [...]
More than 600 people attended Alger Delta’s Annual Meeting. The meeting featured a picnic-style cookout, games and activities for the whole family and many prize drawings. “The fun atmosphere helps draw the members in,” said Tom Harrell, Alger Delta’s CEO. Harrell praised the Alger Delta board and staff for their efforts in putting the whole event together. Alger Delta members discussed the cooperatives’ decision [...]
Lawmakers are working to update Michigan’s 8-year-old energy law to account for aging coal plants, new environmental standards and ever-changing technology. Over the course of the last year, both the Senate and the House released energy reform bills that were passed by their respective committees. These packages are the product of hundreds of hours of dialog and testimony from environmental groups, business owners, utilities [...]
When new energy regulations were passed, an important and potentially influential renewable energy source was overlooked - geothermal. Geothermal heating and cooling systems (which bring in heat from the ground or conduct it back into the earth) currently have a tax credit, which allows more businesses and homeowners to purchase them. Why should more home and business owners install geothermal systems? Electric capacity – [...]
Thumb Electric Cooperative (TEC), held its 79th Annual Meeting and Member Appreciation Day on June 11. About 500 people attended, which was highlighted by the election of three directors and entertainment activities. Re-elected were Randall Dhyse (Huron County), Louis Wenzlaff (Tuscola County), and Kim Nunn (Sanilac County). Officers re-elected are Louis Wenzlaff, president; Donald Wolschleger, vice-president; Beth McDonald, secretary; and Randall Dhyse, treasurer. General [...]
Mother Nature tried to foil Team Midwest with threats of storms, but in the end Team Midwest took Cassopolis by storm in this week’s Changing the Landscape Day of Service. On Wednesday, the entire southwest Michigan family of Midwest Energy Cooperative, Midwest Propane and Midwest Connections employees came together in an unprecedented day of community service across Cassopolis and surrounding communities. Nearly 90 employees [...]
Everybody loves food. It nourishes, delights and unites us. Perhaps that’s why the members’ recipe feature in Michigan Country Lines has been a favorite for decades. “To build on that strength we launched MI Co-op Kitchen- an interactive digital cooking community exclusively for Michigan co-op members,” explains Casey Clark, director of communications and marketing at MECA. MI Co-op Kitchen launched on May 7, 2016 [...]
The Michigan Electric Cooperative Association (MECA) and Great Lakes Energy Cooperative have launched a special project to explore options for the future of the Great Lakes Energy Joint Apprenticeship and Training Program. “Great Lakes Energy has been providing quality instruction and leadership in our apprenticeship lineman program for more than two decades,” said Craig Borr, MECA CEO. “However, because of the resources necessary to [...]
