Large crowd elects two new board members and re-elects one incumbent at Kosciusko REMC’s 71st Annual Meeting
Warsaw, Indiana – A crowd of approximately 1,250 Kosciusko REMC members and their families filled Warsaw Community Church on Saturday, April 17th, for the electric cooperative’s 71st Annual Meeting. The primary item on the agenda was the election of directors. Incumbent Fred Powell defeated Tony Fleming to serve another three-year term. Kim Buhrt defeated Steve Vanlaningham in her first run for the board; she was elected to fill the seat vacated by retiring director Don Arnold after 21 years. Pam Messmore was also elected to her first term on the board, defeating Steve Miner. Miner leaves the board after serving as a director for 27 years.
Also in attendance at the meeting were several area elected officials, including U.S. Congressman Mark Souder, representing Indiana’s 3rd District; and Indiana State Representative David Wolkins, District 18; Representative Bill Ruppel, District 22; and Representative Bill Friend, District 23.
With the annual meeting theme of “Gearing Up,” Board Chairman John Anglin addressed members about the importance of electric cooperatives to their local communities. KREMC President and CEO Steve Rhodes presented an industry forecast and discussed how these issues may impact KREMC in the immediate future. During the meeting, the 2009 Annual Report was also presented. It was accompanied by financial report highlights from Board Secretary/Treasurer Terry Bouse.
Members were entertained by Wawasee High School’s “Vocal Motion,” directed by Connie Meadows. Children participated in a kids program featuring “The Village Puppeteers” from Saugatuck, Michigan. Free portraits of children were taken by Signature Studio of Winona Lake, and face painting, balloon sculpting and caricatures were provided by TAG Art from Fort Wayne.
“This year brought a lot of change to our Board,” said President and CEO Steve Rhodes. “Annual meeting is a true demonstration of democracy in action, and every vote had an impact in determining the makeup of the Board. We appreciate the great number of members who attended, and who help keep this long-standing co-op tradition alive. Furthermore, I look forward to working with the newly elected directors and commend Steve Miner on his dedicated service to the co-op.”
Kosciusko REMC is a member-owned Touchstone Energy® electric cooperative, serving over 17,000 customers throughout Kosciusko County and into surrounding counties. |
