When you think of October, pumpkins, Halloween, and beautiful fall foliage naturally come to mind. But October is notable for another reason – it’s National Co-op Month! This is the time of year when cooperatives across the country, including People's Electric Cooperative (PEC), celebrate who we are and more importantly, the members we serve.
Similar to how PEC was built by members who came together to bring electricity to our community, cooperatives are conveners for the common good. Your electric co-op exists to provide safe, reliable, and affordable energy to you, the members of the co-op. Equally important is our mission to improve the lives of the members we serve.
As a co-op, we are well-suited to meet the needs of the community because we are locally governed. PEC’s leadership team and employees live right here in the community. Our board of trustees, who set long-term priorities for the co-op, live locally on coop lines.
Another feature that sets our co-op apart from a traditional utility is one of our core principles, “Concern for Community.” PEC employee’s pledged of their own money and contributed more than $8,000 to Ada Regional United Way for 2021, a program that helps fight for the health, education, and financial stability of every person in our community. They do this by collaborating with local coalitions, businesses, and community members to identify community needs. PEC is also proud to donate and support local schools throughout our service territory in various ways. We participate in the Electric Cooperative Youth Tour, where we take our community’s brightest young people to Washington, D.C. for a week-long immersion to experience democracy in action.
Ultimately, the larger community benefits from these programs because of you and your neighbors. You empower the co-op through your membership and through your participation in and support of these programs.
We hope you will think of PEC as more than your energy provider, but instead, as a local business that supports this community and powers economic development and prosperity for the people.
We will continue to learn from our members about their priorities so that we can better serve you – because your electric co-op was built by the community, for the community.