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Annual Meeting Draws 526 Members; Cornett, Hoyt and Anderson Re-Elected (This article below appeared in the July 2006 Rural Missouri Magazine.)
Approximately 950 people of all ages attended the 68th Annual Meeting of Farmers' Electric Cooperative Tuesday night (June 6) at the Gary Dickinson Performing Arts Center in Chillicothe. Member/owners of the cooperative re-elected three members to FEC's board of directors and over 120 door prizes were given away at the conclusion of the business meeting. Mona and Eugene Rennison, Braymer, won the grand prize, a 52-inch big screen television. Re-elected to the
cooperative's board of directors were Ron Cornett, Pattonsburg, Richard
Anderson, Carrollton, and Warren Hoyt, Dawn. The men will serve three-year terms on the
cooperative's board. Cornett, the Cornett also noted that at the
conclusion of the annual meeting, FEC CEO Dan Bryan would have finished his career in the rural electric
cooperative field. "We have had great leadership for the last 24years," Cornett said. "We are well
respected nationally through Dan's efforts on the NRECA Board of Directors and as the long-time
President of N.W.'s Board of Directors." Cornett thanked Bryan for his dedicated
service to FEC and presented Bryan with a Resolution from the cooperative's board of
directors. Bryan's report to the membership held the common theme of "The Times
They Are A Changing." Bryan touched on the 700 jobs that had been added in the
area thanks, in part, to the work of FEC in bringing industry to the
cooperative's Industrial Park, located along the eastern edge of
Chillicothe. 180531"Folks when we sell all of those kilowatt hours in
that industrial park, this helps us stabilize our rates to you,"
Bryan stressed. "For example, we had a rate increase from our power supplier in April
and this time we were able to absorb that increase without passing it along to our
Bryan also pointed out that the cooperative had recorded a history of "great rate stability over the last 25 years." "We have had only one rate increase in the last 15 years and only three rate increases in the last 25 years. We also had a rate decrease in the last 15 years, too." Bryan said the average member on the FEC system spends about $4 a day, or around 16-cents an hour for electricity. "That's pretty cheap labor," Bryan said. "Where can you get any labor for $4 a day that provides you anything close to what your electricity gives you?" Bryan said the cooperative would probably see rate increases over the next 10 to 15 years, but the increases would be less than other utilities in the area. Bryan closed out his report to the membership by bringing his wife, Mary, up on the stage, thanking the members for their support over the last 24 years and presenting photos to show five reasons why he decided to retire. The photos were of the couple's five grandchildren. Following the conclusion of Bryan's report to the membership, Cornett introduced Dean Brookshier, representing Congressman Sam Graves, and State Representative John Quinn. Brookshire and Quinn presented Bryan with Resolutions from their respective legislative branches praising Bryan for his leadership in the rural electric cooperative system and wishing him well upon his retirement. Cornett then introduced FEC's new CEO
Mike Sanders to the membership. Sanders thanked Bryan FEC attorney Lloyd Cleaveland conducted the business meeting of the cooperative, which included the election of the members to the board of directors, the election of the 2007 Committee on Nominations, and a by-law change pertaining to the eligibility of members for positions on the cooperative's board of directors. A total of 526 members were registered at the meeting. Elected to the Committee on Nominations were Kenneth Lee, Dennis Farmer, James A. Waters, Vernon L. Williams, Charlotte F. Miller, JudyHolcer and Dennis Widhalm.
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Bryan
Retires After 68th Annual FEC Meeting
C-T Photo/Laura Schuler Approximately 950 people of all ages attended the 68th annual meeting of Farmers' Electric Cooperative last (Tuesday) night at the Gary Dickinson Performing Arts Center in Chillicothe. Member/owners of the cooperative re-elected three members to FEC's board of directors and over 120 door prizes were given away at the conclusion of the business meeting. Mona and Eugene Rennison, Braymer, won the grand prize, a 52-inch big screen television. Re-elected to the cooperative's board of directors were Ron Cornett, Pattonsburg, Richard Anderson, Carrollton, and Warren Hoyt, Dawn. The men will serve three-year terms on the cooperative's board. Cornett, the cooperative's board president, called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. In his President's Message to the membership Cornett noted that while FEC's rates had gone up a “little bit in 2004, the increase was nothing compared to the other energy sources in the area, including gas and propane. Take a look at the price hikes the municipal utilities in the area have been announcing.” Cornett also touched on the new power plant that will be under construction west of Norborne. “In Missouri, we don't want to end up like California where they wouldn't allow the construction of power plants in the state,” Cornett said. “We want to makes sure we have an adequate supply of affordable electricity now and into the future.” Cornett also noted that at the conclusion of the annual meeting, FEC CEO Dan Bryan would have finished his career in the rural electric cooperative field. “We have had great leadership for the last 24 and 1/2 years,” Cornett said. “We are well respected nationally through Dan's efforts on the NRECA Board of Directors and as the long-time president of N.W.'s Board of Directors.” Cornett thanked Bryan for his dedicated service to FEC and presented Bryan with a resolution from the cooperative's board of directors. |
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Caption: Steven and Carolyn Pratt (left), of rural Breckenridge registered for door prizes
Tuesday evening in the Gary Dickinson Performing Arts Center prior to the Farmers' Electric Cooperative's annual meeting which drew approximately 950 people.
(Wednesday, June 7, 2006,
C-T Photo/Laura Schuler)
cooperative's
Board President, called the meeting to order at 7 p.m. In his
President's Message to the membership Cornett noted that while FEC's rates
had gone up a "little bit in 2004, the increase was nothing compared to
the other energy sources in the area, including gas and propane. Take a
look at the price hikes the municipal utilities in the area have been
announcing." Cornett also touched on the new power plant that will be under
construction west of Norborne. "In Missouri, we don't want to end up like California where
they wouldn't allow the construction of power plants in the state,"
Cornett said. "We want to make sure we have an adequate supply of afford-able electricity now and into
the future."
members."
Bryan cited changes in new technology that would allow the cooperative to "better serve"
its membership." We are in the process of converting everyone to an automatic meter reading system," said
Bryan." These meters are more accurate and when we have completed the installation process you
will no longer have to read your meter. I think it's one of the best things we've
done."
and the Board of Directors for
bringing him into the FEC leadership. He provided the members with a brief history of his
involvement in rural electric cooperatives over the last 25 years.
"In 2005, we paid out over $860,000 in capital credit retirements," said Sanders. "Overall,
we have returned to our members almost $13.9 million in capital credits over the years. If
you received power from an investor owned utility, the profits would have been paid to the stock-holders as
dividends." Sanders noted the challenges in the future, with the biggest challenge being that of rising
energy costs. "In 2004, we had our first rate increase in almost 14 years," Sanders said. "We will not
see that kind of rate stabilization in the near future. What we will do is everything we can to
continue to provide to you with safe, reliable electricity at a reasonable cost."
Caption: Some people walking into the Gary Dickinson Performing Arts Center last (Tuesday) evening for the annual Farmers' Electric Cooperative's annual meeting were treated to a short rain shower which lasted only briefly and dropped only a minimal amount of precipitation on the ground.