What’s Inside Five simple steps to become a co-op voter
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The
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Current
A Publication of Cotton Electric Cooperative Inc.
“The Current - Informing Our Members Since 1957” VOLUME 68
October 11, 2024
NUMBER 2
Cotton Electric employees welcome members to the 2024 Annual Meeting and Member Appreciation Day. Photo by Carli Eubank.
Co-op thanks members for making this year’s Annual Meeting a success By Carli Eubank After months of planning and preparing, Cotton Electric employees welcomed members to the 2024 Annual Meeting and Member Appreciation Day on Sept. 26 at the Stephens County Fairgrounds in Duncan and the Great Plains Coliseum in Lawton. While a new drive-thru registration format was introduced this year to offer more convenience for our members, familiar smiles and handshakes were exchanged with those in attendance. Members were guided and greeted through the registration lines until they reached the first station where an employee searched the member’s account and handed them a ballot to vote on the proposed bylaw amendments before driving forward to submit their ballot and receive their gift of a limited-edition hat and a $20 energy voucher. Over the next few hours, a steady flow of members cruised through registration, and a friendly competition of registering efficiency broke out among employees. There were 891 registered members, with several family members and friends in attendance for an afternoon of co-op business and community. Later that evening, the livestreamed business meeting was called to order at 8 p.m. by Board President Shan Files. Next, Ken Layn, Board Trustee of District 2, gave the invocation followed by Board Trustee of District 4 Brian DeMarcus, who led the Pledge of Allegiance. Following the playing of the national anthem, members received a brief overview of the cooperative’s business, including an introduction of the co-op’s Board of Trustees, a recap of Operation Round Up and an invitation for members to advocate for electric cooperatives, like signing up for Voices for Cooperative Power. Then, Steve Robinson, secretary-treasurer and Board Trustee of District 7 presented his report of the co-op’s well-managed financial status, sharing that the co-op met all of its financial requirements for 2023. Files invited the co-op’s legal counsel, Carl Buckholts, to the podium to report on the official
Power Cost Adjustment Calculated The power cost adjustment now being applied to bills mailed after Oct. 1, 2024, is $0.00046 per kilowatt-hours (kWh). On a member’s average bill of 1,300 kWh, this will amount to a charge of $00.59 on the October bill.
notice and presence of quorum for this year’s Annual Meeting. Five percent of the co-op’s membership must be present to reach quorum, which allows those in attendance to vote on co-op business. Buckholts announced that a quorum was met for the business meeting with a total of 891 registered members, exceeding the amount needed for quorum of 836 registered members. Files and Buckholts then announced the results of the proposed bylaw amendments before ending the business meeting. More information about the voting results can be found in the CEO column on Page 2. Files then shared a message about how the co-op will continue to move forward through the adversities and do its best to keep the lights on each and every day. Closing out on his three-year term as the co-op’s Board president, Files shared his appreciation of the experiences and interactions with
September 2024 Temperature Extremes Day High Low 1 94 76 2 88 71 3 82 70 4 87 71 5 95 68 6 93 66 7 88 63 8 89 55 9 90 52 10 91 49 11 93 54 12 92 60 13 98 60 14 100 74 15 98 72
Source: srh.noaa.gov/oun/
Avg. 85 80 76 79 82 80 76 72 71 70 74 76 79 87 85
Day High Low 16 96 72 17 95 69 18 99 71 19 102 75 20 103 75 21 100 72 22 91 62 23 79 60 24 90 59 25 88 59 26 88 54 27 90 56 28 92 55 29 92 55 30 93 55
Average Daily High: 93 Average Daily Low: 64
Avg. 84 82 85 89 89 86 77 70 75 74 71 73 74 74 74
everyone while serving in that position and announced DeMarcus as the next Board president. Next, Cotton Electric CEO Jennifer Meason ended the 2024 Annual Meeting and Member Appreciation Day by thanking members for their participation in this year’s successful event before announcing the winners of the prize drawings. A complete list of winners can be found on Page 7. To watch the 2024 Annual Meeting business meeting, visit our YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/@CottonElectricCoop. Thank you to all of our members who participated in this year’s Annual Meeting and made it a successful event. We hope to see you next year!
Did You Know?
Contact Us
Cotton Electric offices will be closed Monday, Oct. 14 for All Employee Training Day. Emergency calls will be answered at 580-875-3351 or 800-522-3520.
Do you have a story idea for The Current, or do you need to place an ad? If so, let us know. We can be reached at 580-875-3351 or by email at TheCurrent@ cottonelectric.com. You can also drop us a line at Cotton Electric Current, 226 N. Broadway, Walters, OK 73572.
The next issue of The Current should arrive in mailboxes Nov. 8, 2024.
Mission Statement Our mission is to safely deliver reliable and affordable power, provide excellent member service, and improve the quality of life in the communities we serve.