NEWS FROM YOUR COOPERATI www.myremc.coop CONTACT US OFFICE
812-865-2229 TOLL FREE 888-337-5900 BILL PAYMENTS 855-865-2229 CONTACT US BY EMAIL
orangecoremc@myremc.coop GENERAL MANAGER/CEO
Danny L. Arnold OFFICE HOURS
7 a.m.–5 p.m., Monday-Friday STREET ADDRESS
7133 N. State Road 337 Orleans, IN 47452 MAILING ADDRESS
P.O. Box 208, Orleans, IN 47452 EMERGENCY POWER OUTAGES
To report service interruptions, call: 812-865-2229 or 888-337-5900, day or night. Please have the phone number associated with your account ready when reporting outages. Please limit after hours calls to emergencies and outage situations. BOARD OF DIRECTORS
Eugene Roberts, DISTRICT 1 Randy Roberts, DISTRICT 2 Danny Easterday, DISTRICT 3 Rodney Hager, DISTRICT 4 Ben Lindsey, DISTRICT 5 Brian Hawkins, DISTRICT 6 George Key, DISTRICT 7 REMC KEY STAFF
Marty Frank, OPERATIONS MANAGER Marcy Bennett, OFFICE MANAGER Larry Pinnick, MATERIALS MANAGER Michael Roberts, STAKING ENGINEER Misty Tincher, ACCOUNTANT Billy Chastain, STAKING ENGINEER AIDE Mark Belcher, MARKETING/MEMBER SERVICES MEMBER SERVICES
•Free energy analysis •Budget billing •Automatic payments •Security lights •Home security systems •Medical emergency monitoring •Air evac life team •Water heater and HVAC incentives (requires an EM switch) •Online bill payment options •Interactive Voice Response system . for payments and account inquiries via phone: 1-855-865-2229 •VISA, MasterCard and Discover accepted •Exede Internet - 855-797-7855 4
Democracy at the co-op Democratic member control is critical to the operation of every co-op While the national elections of the past November may be fading from your memory, voting for politicians is not the only way co-op members can practice democracy. Every cooperative — DANNY L. ARNOLD whether it’s this REMC, your credit union or the local farm co-op — follows the basic principle of one member, one vote. Most often you are asked to vote and elect individuals to represent you on a board of directors. These people are your friends, neighbors and fellow residents from our community. Occasionally, you may be asked to vote on an issue, such as a bylaw change (this is like the constitution for your co-op) or a matter of great importance like when we opted out of Indiana Utility Regulatory Commission oversight. Every member in good standing of the co-op may run for the board. This is one of the key differences between a co-op member and a customer of an investorowned utility (IOU). Most IOUs are not too interested in customers’ opinions on how the company should be run. Cooperatives invite participation. In fact, it is critically important to the survival of the co-op. Most REMCs serve far fewer people than IOUs. Electric cooperatives measure their number of members in the thousands, IOUs in the millions. If you are not actively involved with the cooperative, we all suffer. As the electric utility industry evolves, having interested members who are willing to take an active role is critically important. Own: This idea refers to each member truly believing and feeling that they do indeed share in the ownership of the cooperative. This can come from attending the annual meeting, voting, running for a seat on the board of directors, or participating in other co-op events. Use: For us this means that you help
ELECTRIC CONSUMER • JANUARY 2015 • ElectricConsumer.org
“At Orange County REMC, we believe in the ‘own, use, serve, and belong’ model.” us use the cooperative’s resources wisely. (After all, you are an owner of those resources.) You may choose to utilize the free energy audits that REMC offers. You may choose to use energy-efficient appliances made more affordable by incentive payments from REMC, you may use LED or CFL lights you got from REMC, or you may take advantage of other member discounts on quality services such as Exede Internet Service or Air Evac Lifeteam. Or, you may choose to help us make our generating plants more efficient by participating in the Energy Management Program or the optional Time-of-Use billing program. Serve: If we are successful with “own” and “use,” perhaps you will feel called to serve your co-op — maybe as a board member, a program volunteer, or an Operation Round Up trustee. Belong: We all seek to belong to something. In the early days when the co-op was just getting started, neighbors helped neighbors. While our lives seem busier and more electronically driven than ever, the need to connect and belong is necessary for us and our communities to thrive. There is great power in the human connection, and at Orange County REMC, we strive to do that every day. Right now is a critical time in the democratic process at Orange County REMC. Even though our annual meeting is still several months away, the process for selecting members to serve as directors is in full swing. According to our bylaws, incumbent directors seeking re-election to the board must file letters of intent at least 120 days in advance of each annual meeting. In 2015, the terms of two directors, Danny Easterday and Brian Hawkins, will