No one plans an annual meeting expecting it to follow on the heels of a major storm—and it certainly isn’t how we would have drawn it up. But Mother Nature rarely consults the calendar. Just one day before Community Electric Cooperative’s Annual Member Meeting in mid-August, a powerful thunderstorm swept through the area, snapping tree limbs and utility poles, bringing down power lines and leaving more than 800 households without power.
Fewer than 24 hours later, CEC’s team had restored power to all member-owners and turned its attention to the Annual Member Meeting. Despite the unexpected lead-in, spirits were high as more than 40 people attended in person, including State Sen. Emily Jordan, while more than 20 others joined via the meeting’s live digital feed. It wasn’t the way we would have chosen to begin the occasion, but it offered a fitting reminder of the dedication and resilience that define the cooperative and the people who serve it.
The gathering gave Community Electric the chance to celebrate its member-owners, update them on the cooperative’s operations, hold a prize drawing for attendees and make charitable donations to two local nonprofit organizations on behalf of participants in the Youth Scholarship Program.
“This year’s Member Meeting was heartwarming in a number of ways,” CEC President and Chief Executive Officer Steven A. Harmon recalls. “Our response to the previous day’s storm underscored the dedication of our line workers. At the same time, the various elements of the meeting itself shined a light on the professionalism of our staff in providing a positive experience for those who attended. The support we received from vendors and community partners demonstrated the strength of the relationships that our organization and our team members have in the region. I’m proud of all the people who helped make this Member Meeting a success.”
Charitable donations of $500 each went to Isle of Wight & Southampton 4-H and to the Friends of Crisis Pregnancy Center of Tidewater. The organizations were selected to receive the donations, respectively, by Cole Hewett and Samuel Weatherly, two of this year’s participants in the CEC Youth Scholarship Program. Both young men attended the meeting and personally presented the donations to the organizations they selected.
“Giving back is not a requirement of our Youth Program – it’s an additional opportunity available to our participants,” CEC Manager of Communications Jessica Parr notes. “Cole and Samuel chose to take advantage of that opportunity, and we couldn’t be prouder of these amazing young men for using their experience with CEC to make an impact beyond themselves.”
Door prizes went to some of the in-person attendees and several members who viewed the event through Facebook Live. Here’s the list of entities that provided the prizes and otherwise supported this year’s Member Meeting:
- CEEUS Inc.
- Dewitt’s Automotive Center
- Helena Agri-Enterprises
- Inside Information Inc.
- Koppers
- Old Dominion Electric Cooperative
- Powerful Web
- TMS
- Virginia, Maryland & Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives
- Xylem Tree Experts