Blue Ridge Electric Announces New Director: Clayton Cooke to Fulfill Remainder of GC Norris Term
For Immediate Release
Contact: Renee Whitener, Director of Corporate Communications, Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation, (828) 758-2383 ext. 3213; Pager:1-800-471-1323; or E-mail: Renee Whitener
Boone, North Carolina (October 3, 2003) – Clayton R. Cooke, of Boone, has been appointed to the board of directors of Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation.
Cooke will fulfill the unexpired term of Watauga District director G.C. Norris, who passed away earlier this year. Cooke was recommended by an ad hoc committee of the board and approved by board members at their regular September meeting in accordance with the bylaws of the cooperative. The term expires at the 2005 Annual Membership Meeting.
Cooke, who holds masters and bachelors degrees in Business and Economics from Appalachian State University (ASU), recently retired as Internal Auditor and Project Manager for Business System Implementations at ASU where he served for 32 years. Cooke has previously served as a member of the local board of the American Cancer Society, ASU’s alumni council, and on the board of Resort Area Ministries. He also served as president of the Boone Jaycees for two years.
Cooke and his wife, Nancy, who is a teacher at Parkway Elementary School, are members of Deerfield Methodist Church where Cooke also serves as Treasurer. They have two grown children, Barrett who resides in Charlotte, and Jennifer who resides in New Bern.
“We are very pleased to announce Clayton Cooke as our new director representing Watauga District,” said John Woodruff, president of the board. “He has been a member of Blue Ridge Electric since 1974 and has worked tirelessly within his community. He has a true devotion to the cooperative and to the Watauga district members he represents. He brings with him exceptionally strong skills and expertise that will benefit the cooperative and our membership,” Woodruff added.
Blue Ridge Electric is a member-owned cooperative established in 1935 to provide at-cost electric service to its members. The cooperative provides electric service to some 66,000 member-owners in Ashe, Alleghany, Caldwell, Watauga, Wilkes and Alexander counties. A 12-member board of directors guides the management and operations of the cooperative. Directors, who serve staggered three year terms, must be members of the cooperative and are elected by their peers at the cooperative’s Annual Membership Meeting, which is held the second Saturday in June each year.
