FLYING THE CO-OP FLAG
Cooperatives pay tribute to Co-op Month
 |
|
During his address, Gov. Hoeven praised electric cooperatives for their commitment to economic development. Wearing a matching T-shirt to show his support for Co-op Month, Hoeven posed with the Capital Electric Cooperative board of directors including (left to right) Shelly Peterson, David Liuska, Arlene Olson, Dwight Wrangham, Duane “Rusty” Lasher, Ervin Mund, Bernard Falkenstein and Blaine Doppler. (Missing: Jim Hawkins) |
Hundreds of employees, managers, directors and
guests gathered on the east lawn of Basin Electric Power Cooperative’s headquarters in Bismarck Oct. 19 in celebration of Co-op Month. Donning dark blue T-shirts and bandanas emblazoned with “Co-ops: Owned by our Members, Committed to our Communities,” the crowd celebrated the power of human connections by connecting with co-op friends.
“October is Co-op Month—a chance for all of us in the cooperative family to fly our flag—to proudly proclaim what we as co-ops have done, are doing and will do, to improve the quality of life of the people who own us,” said Dennis Hill, general manager of the North Dakota Association of Rural Electric Cooperatives (NDAREC).
Hosted by Basin Electric, the event was also sponsored by NDAREC, National Information Solutions Cooperative, North Dakota Farmers Union, North Dakota’s credit unions, Capital Electric Cooperative, Mor-Gran-Sou Electric Cooperative and the North Dakota Telecommunications Cooperatives. Representatives from several of the affiliated groups spoke about the cooperative principles, the dedicated employees and directors who work for cooperatives and the economic impact cooperatives have on the economy.
Because the celebration was held within a mile of the Capital Electric Cooperative headquarters, Hill talked about Capital Electric’s economic impact and local commitment to community.
“The customers of Capital Electric, and all the member-owners of electric cooperatives across the state, share in the annual margins of the cooperative. Last year, Capital Electric gave back more than $1.1million dollars in capital credits to its member-owners,” he said.
“That, to me, is the beauty of our cooperative business model. There is not an inherent conflict of interest in our model between the customer and the company. In our world, employees come to work each day with only one mission in mind: to serve. We serve our owners, and we serve our communities.”
At the close of the event, Gov. John Hoeven signed the “October is Co-op Month” proclamation. He praised cooperatives by saying that when it comes to economic development in rural areas, electric cooperatives are the leaders.