Directors Elected at Annual Meeting
For Immediate Release
Contact: Renee Whitener, Director of Public Relations, Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation, (828) 758-2383, Ext. 3213; Pager: 1-800-471-1323; or E-mail: Renee Whitener
Sparta, North Carolina (June 9, 2007) – Bryan Lee Edwards of Alleghany County was among four directors elected to the board of Blue Ridge Electric Membership Corporation today during the cooperative’s Annual Membership Meeting held at Ashe County High School.
Edwards filled the seat of retiring director John Woodruff, who has served on the board for the past 39 years and has been president since 2002. Edwards, who was nominated by the cooperative’s Nominating Committee, is town manager of Sparta. A graduate of Appalachian State University, Edwards is treasurer of the Alleghany County Economic Development Commission, among other community activities. He and his wife, Terry, live in Sparta and have four adult daughters.
During the meeting, Chief Executive Officer Doug Johnson recognized Woodruff for his distinguished leadership on the board. “John has been an outstanding leader and member advocate,” he said. “John’s work in education and his emphasis on helping young people, teamed with his years of service to community and this cooperative are noteworthy life achievements and deserve our highest praise.”
Also re-elected to the board were: Bradley McNeill of Ashe district; Jeff Joines of Caldwell district; and James Burl (JB) Lawrence Jr., of Watauga district.
During the meeting, President Woodruff welcomed the crowd of approximately 1,200 members and their families and was followed by Joines, who reported that the cooperative is in sound financial condition and remains one of the strongest cooperatives in the nation.
Chief Financial Officer Lee Chase reaffirmed that message, adding that Blue Ridge Electric retired $1.2 million in capital credits to members last December, which provided additional savings for the member-owners of the cooperative.
In his CEO report to the membership, Johnson said the cooperative is striving in many ways to look out for the best interests of its members. He recognized the efforts of the cooperative’s dedicated employees to provide the highest in member care. “The American Consumer Satisfaction Index (ACSI) is the largest satisfaction survey in the United Sates, and we are scoring among the top two percent among electric utilities in customer satisfaction on the ACSI,” he said.
Power reliability is the most critical way the cooperative is serving its members, he said. “We’ve recently taken major steps to improve reliability and I’m proud to say that we kept the power on 99.97 percent of the time last year,” he said.
Johnson also noted that the cooperative is working to benefit members by controlling costs. New technology being installed such as automated metering infrastructure (AMI), which enables remote meter reading and more detailed information on energy usage, will lead to operating efficiencies as well as provide insight on improving the energy efficiency of individual homes and businesses.
The wholesale power purchase agreement signed last year with Duke Energy Carolinas signed is also helping contain rising power costs, which will benefit members long-term. Regarding the effects of the agreement and other wholesale power cost containment measures, Johnson added that he believes members will be pleased with the results of a cost of service study currently underway and scheduled for completion latter this summer.
To learn about more Blue Ridge Electric’s 2006 operations, see its annual report online at www.BlueRidgeEMC.com.
Annual meeting prize winners from Alleghany district were: Donald Sturgill, widescreen LCD HDTV; L.E. Berrier, digital camera; and four $50 bills awarded to: Anna Irwin, Earlene Miles, Mary Reed and Mitchell Franklin.
