KEC Light Post June 2020

JUNE 2020

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Maximize your summer savings

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Operation Round Up report

A supplement to the Oklahoma Living

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Lig ght Post

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Pork tacos with mango salsa

PUBLISHED FOR MEMBERS OF KIAMICHI ELECTRIC COOPERATIVE

Youth Tour winners to receive scholarships in lieu of trip to Washington, D.C. The effects of the global COVID-19 pandemic continue to be felt as the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) canceled all activities through Aug. 31 — including the annual Youth Tour.

“We, as well as the much-deserving winners, are devastated they won’t get to experience the trip to Washington, D.C. this summer,” said Todd Minshall, KEC member services director. “While there is no substitute for the knowledge gained and the friendships formed during Youth Tour, we do hope these scholarships will help ease their disappointment.”

In lieu of the annual all-expenses-paid trip to the nation’s capital, KEC is awarding the three exceptional youth, pictured above — Cheyenne Patzack, Christian Gockel and Dulcie McLane — a $2,000 scholarship.

Each year, KEC awards three local high school juniors a week-long, all-expenses-paid trip to Washington, D.C. as part of the Oklahoma Youth Tour. High school students who have won similar competitions at our 20+ sister co-ops around the state also attend Youth Tour, where youth from across the nation join to tour historic sites and national monuments, visit with their state’s Congressional delegation and make memories that will last a lifetime.

Visit the Oklahoma Youth Tour Facebook Page to honor all the outstanding students who will miss out on this year’s trip.

Congratulations to the 2020 KEC Youth Tour winners from Wilburton High School!

Cheyenne Patzack Christian Gockel Dulcie McLane

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ceo’s report BRETT ORME

C HI E F E X E C U T I V E O F F I C ER

Kiamichi Electric Cooperative 944 SW Highway 2 PO Box 340 Wilburton, Oklahoma 74578 tele: (918) 465-2338 toll free: (800) 888-2731 FAX: (918) 465-2950 www.kiamichielectric.org email: support@kiamichielectric.org HOURS OF OPERATION Monday-Friday 8 am to 5 pm 24-HOUR OUTAGE HOTLINE (800) 888-2731 BOARD OF TRUSTEES Don Parr, President DISTRICT 5 Mark Ichord, Vice President DISTRICT 6 Ron Pelanconi, Treasurer DISTRICT 3 Russell Shaw DISTRICT 1 Amy Miller DISTRICT 2 David Ray DISTRICT 4 Larry Culwell DISTRICT 7 Brett Orme Executive Vice President-CEO Kiamichi Electric provides reliable and affordable electricity to members in Pushmataha, Leflore, Latimer, Atoka and Pittsburg Counties.

The energy industry is undergoing rapid change, and technology is paving the way for innovation in the way energy is used, produced, stored and shared. Consumers are interested in more green energy alternatives while smart homes and apps make managing energy use and paying your electric bill more convenient than ever.

While the changing energy market has created more options for consumers, it has also resulted in more utility scams and misleading information surrounding solar installations in particular. That’s because of two factors.

Utility scams are common because of the vast number of utilities that exist, and consumers are understandably anxious with the threat of disruption to their electric, heating or water service. Second, new products and services in the energy industry provide an opening for scammers and pop-up companies to provide misleading information or shoddy products and services.

Avoid Phone Scams: A common phone scam typically begins with a phone number that appears to be from a valid utility company. The scammer will claim you have a past due account and threaten to disconnect service or take legal action. The scammer will typically demand that you use a prepaid debit card or money order, often within a very short, urgent time frame to pay the “past due” amount.

You can combat this scam by being aware of the status of your account. Never give your banking or personal information over the phone to someone you did not call. If you have a question or concern about your energy bill, call us directly at 918-465-2338.

Do not use the phone number given by the scammer.

Avoid Solar Scams: Another scam we see from time to time is connected to rooftop solar. Homeowners with rooftop solar may

receive a sales call offering an accessory, upgrade or extended warranty to their solar array. The calls could be from crooks claiming to represent a solar company, promising to replace faulty or broken parts or improve efficiency. Again, if you are not expecting the call, don’t be fooled. These calls offering misleading information are likely a scam. Call KEC or the company that installed the solar array if you think there may be a problem. Other than occasional cleaning, rooftop solar (if installed correctly) is virtually maintenance-free.

Use Trusted Sources: If you’re considering solar for your home, make sure you are working with a reputable company.

Because this is still an emerging industry with evolving technology, there has been a proliferation of pop-up companies in the market to make a quick buck.

Representatives of rooftop solar companies may have more sales experience than knowledge of the energy industry, and their primary goal could be making a sale and moving on to the next prospect.

KEC can offer a candid assessment to determine whether rooftop solar is right for you. After all, KEC has a different “bottom line” that is not directly tied to the sale of a product or service. We take a more holistic, objective view of how to achieve energy and cost savings for our members, and that may or may not include rooftop solar.

In this ever-changing environment, it’s important to remember you have a trusted energy advisor – your local electric cooperative. We are a community-focused organization that works to efficiently deliver affordable, reliable and safe energy to our members.

Remember, we’re just one call or click away, so please reach out with any questions about your electric service or bills – we’re here to help.

Remember you have a trusted energy advisor — your local electric cooperative.

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Consider a smart thermostat to maximize summer energy savings A Comparison of the Market’s Smartest and Most Popular Heating and cooling costs account for around half of a user’s energy bill according to the U.S. Department of Energy. So when it comes to reducing energy use and cutting home energy costs, the most impact can be made by programming the thermostat. The right thermostat settings could yield energy savings of 8-15%, and new technology is making it easier than ever to achieve those settings.

Smart thermostats are Wi-Fi enabled and may be controlled remotely through a tablet, smartphone or voice control. Some models use multiple sensors to monitor temperatures in various parts of the home for more balanced heating or cooling, track user temperature preferences and use the data to optimize your heating and cooling schedule, and some are designed for complex multi-stage systems that will control heating, cooling, dehumidifier and ventilation systems.

If you’re interested in controlling your thermostat with your voice or an app, or in being hands-off and letting it learn your habits, you should consider a smart thermostat. To narrow your choices, factor in smart features, price and attributes that matter most to you, such as color, size or style, and make sure the chosen product supports your HVAC system.

The Nest 3rd Generation Learning Thermostat and Ecobee4 are the most popular and sophisticated devices in this category. Both devices are usually priced around $250, but consumers can easily recoup their money in energy cost savings.

There are many similarities between the two thermostats. Both can be adjusted via computer, tablet, smartphone, Google Assistant or Amazon Alexa device (the Ecobee4 even has a built-in Alexa-enabled speaker).

And both thermostats can interact with other smart devices and utilize geofencing—using your phone’s GPS to determine if you’re home, then automatically adjusting the temperature. Nest’s geofencing works with multiple phones, while Ecobee supports just one phone. Ecobee makes up for this with its more sophisticated sensors.

The Nest and Ecobee offer for purchase, remote

sensors that allow the thermostat to take readings from any room throughout your home and adjust the temperature accordingly. This can be an advantage if your thermostat is located near a draft or in direct sunlight. The Ecobee’s sensors go one step further with occupancy sensing, which notices if there is movement in the house, in order to override geofencing if the primary phone user leaves the house and someone is still there.

While many of the features are similar, there a few that are notably different and can help you determine which is right for you.

Nest, powered by a rechargeable battery, is a learning thermostat and automatically learns your schedule.

When you begin using Nest, it makes a few assumptions and creates a baseline for its schedule. As you adjust the temperature up or down, Nest records it, and after a week, learns your schedule and the temperature settings you prefer. From then, it continues to learn and respond to your adjustments.

Ecobee must be hardwire installed, utilizes a touchscreen and can analyze HVAC data for 18 months.

All temperature and motion data from the thermostat and sensors is recorded, and can be accessed online by the owner to help you monitor total energy use, how the weather influences your use, and how your home efficiency compares to other users in your area.

The two thermostats also can connect with various energy devices in your home. Ecobee recognizes dehumidifiers and ventilators, and Next recognizes heat pumps and auxiliary heat.

For those looking for a smart thermostat with fewer bells and whistles, the Honeywell Lyric T5+ is one of the market’s most popular, priced around $135. While it can’t sense your presence or learn your schedule, it does have the geofencing feature and can interact with other smarthome devices, such as turning on lights when you arrive or leave home.

Whichever fits your lifestyle and preferences, a smart thermostat is a good investment that can help you save energy and money in a more convenient way than ever.

Heating and cooling costs account for around half of your energy bills according to the U.S. Dept. of Energy?

The right thermostat settings could yield energy savings of 8-15%!

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operation round up M O N T H LY U P D AT E Operation Round Up® is a voluntary bill roundup program that benefits local communities, organizations ,and needy families. Funding applications are available at Kiamichi Electric, local social services, or online at www.kiamichielectric.org.

YEAR-TO-DATE COLLECTIONS 2020: $26,099.26 YEAR-TO-DATE DISBURSEMENTS: $9,915.78 TOTAL COLLECTED SINCE INCEPTION: $1,633,974.12 SINCE ITOTAL D EDISBURSEMENTS S N I A T R U CINCEPTION: G WW E S F B L J Z S M H R R B S $1,565,808.10 K S G H G S E B O R V S Z N O S D G M M C E C K Z G I D M C L T J A A T G Z T M Q I B H M O W Energy T D L Efficiency X J L H R S I L T E W I M J C O E P Y H O V E I U C N T X J Y H G W X A N F A A O J R K makes E H upAa large L Tportion A L I energy L U O D Home F cooling of your K Try Eto S bills. keepXtheSdifference the temperature H Q between B S L V C Z K W of J yourCthermostat setting T H G F and M the X outside Z R temperature A O S E T toM a minimum.

TheC smaller C E A Z the I difference, G V Q theEmore R E R F energy you will save.

C R G K W O A T N O Energy.gov Z F I S T Source: Y C R I T E B O H E M D Y F Q P H O N E C H A R G E R S C H

Tip of the Month

RECIPE

Pork Tacos with Mango Salsa INGREDIENTS • • • • • • • •

2 tablespoons lime juice 2 tablespoons white vinegar 3 tablespoons chili powder 2 teaspoons ground cumin 1-1/2 teaspoons salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper 3 cups cubed fresh pineapple 1 small red onion, coarsely chopped • 2 chipotle peppers in adobo sauce

• 1 bottle (12 ounces) dark Mexican beer • 3 pounds pork tenderloin, cut into 1-inch cubes • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro • 1 jar (16 ounces) mango salsa • 24 corn tortillas (6 inches), warmed • Optional: cubed fresh pineapple, chopped avocado and queso fresco

DIRECTIONS 1. Puree first 9 ingredients in a blender; stir in beer. In a 5- or 6-qt. slow cooker, combine pork and pineapple mixture. Cook, covered, on low until pork is very tender, 6-8 hours. Stir to break up pork.

2. Stir cilantro into salsa. Using a slotted spoon, serve pork mixture in tortillas; add salsa and toppings as desired.

Freeze option: Freeze cooled meat mixture and cooking juices in freezer containers. To use, partially thaw in refrigerator overnight.

Heat through in a saucepan, stirring occasionally.

Recipe from TasteofHome.com

SUMMER ENERGY-SAVINGS WORD SEARCH When you save energy at home, you’re helping your family save money and protecting our environment.

Read the energy-saving tips below, then find and circle the bolded words in the puzzle.

• Close blinds and curtains on hot, sunny days to block additional heat from entering your home.

• Turn off lights and electronics, like TVs and stereos, when you leave a room.

• Turn off the water while you brush your teeth.

• Only clean full loads of dishes when you run the dishwasher.

• Cooking with smaller appliances like slow cookers and toaster ovens use less energy than larger appliances.

• Unplug phone chargers when they’re not in use – they consume energy even when they aren’t charging devices.

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A S O K T H Y W L Q M I A B H

T M R Z M R H X T B X G T O A

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U R S I I I V N L L R Q O E G

C R Z D B L E F I V A E Z M E

G B N M H T I A L C O R F D R

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