Record Crowd Attends Annual Meeting
Officials believe crowd was the largest in cooperative’s history
Broad River Electric Cooperative members, friends, and local dignitaries packed the utility’s auditorium on Saturday, May 5th for the 2012 Annual Membership Meeting. Registered member-owners for the event tallied to 1,543, which ranks second in the cooperative’s 72-year history, behind the 1,677 registrations recorded in 2007.
Longtime Broad River Electric officials believe Saturday’s crowd is the largest in the event’s history. President/CEO Doug Wilson, who has been with the cooperative for 40 years, pointed out that the 2007 Annual Meeting occurred before Broad River Electric implemented more restrictive policies which now prevent individual members from registering multiple accounts.
“I feel sure that the number in attendance Saturday is a record for our Annual Meeting,” said Wilson. “We appreciate all our members’ participation in the business of their cooperative. It is the most important day of the year for us and it could not have gone better.”
All those registered received a digital weather radio and were automatically entered into multiple prize drawings for items such as a George Foreman Grill, an Apple iPad 2, and the grand prize of a GMC truck, which was retired from the cooperative’s fleet.
Those in attendance also took with them a moving experience thanks to a presentation about the cooperatives sending 100 World War II veterans on an Honor Flight, where they got to visit the memorials erected in their honor. The four veterans that Broad River sponsored, Francis Wilkins of Gaffney, Roy Hall of Wellford, Dewitt Elliot of Cowpens, and Stanley Cantrell of Taylors, were recognized during the presentation and the entire auditorium responded with a stirring standing ovation.
Saturday was also the membership’s formal introduction to Wilson, who took over as President and CEO in January. In his address, Wilson pointed out the cooperative’s many challenges, local and global, and his vision of providing reliable, affordable electricity to them.
“The Cooperative continues to maintain its focus on those responsibilities that are ours,” Wilson stated. “High on that list is to do what we can to ensure our members receive quality service through the use of technology and good old fashion conservation.”
Employees honored for service milestones include Joe Howard (40 years), Debbie Rash (30 years), Jason Keller (25 years), Lee Yarborough (20 years) Jason Bradley (15 years) Arthur Secrest (10 years) and Joe Bradley (10 years). Trustee Roy Gardner was also honored for 35 years of board service, the body’s longest active tenure.
Other activities included a blood donation opportunity with the Blood Connection, Broad River Power Association’s antique tractor display, and a hands-on exhibit of the 2012 Nissan LEAF, a zero-emissions electric vehicle. Local rock ‘n roll band HAZE provided the pre-meeting entertainment.
Trustees Bill Peeler, Wayne West and DeCole Gallman were unopposed and reelected to the Board by acclamation.
Broad River Electric serves members in Cherokee, Spartanburg, Union and Newberry counties in South Carolina and Cleveland, Polk, and Rutherford counties in North Carolina with accountability, integrity, innovation, and commitment to community.
