May 28, 2014. Participating in the election of directors for the cooperative is one of the most important ways members can be involved in their cooperative.
Convenient options to vote online or by mail have been added in recent years to encourage more participation in director elections. The effort has been successful, with thousands voting in recent elections compared to several hundred voting when the only option was to attend the cooperative’s annual meeting.
Members may vote for directors online or by mail through 5 p.m. Wednesday, June 4. Additionally, they will be entered in a drawing to win a Smart HDTV.
Director election information was mailed to all members on May 14, including biographical information on each candidate, information about voting options, information and code to cast votes online, and the official proxy to use when voting by mail as well as a postage paid envelope in which to return the proxy when voting by mail.
Members may also vote during the cooperative’s annual meeting which will be held Thursday, June 12, at 4 p.m.at the corporate office meeting room in Lenoir located at 1216 Blowing Rock Blvd. The business meeting will include cooperative updates and reports from key board and cooperative staff members. Results of the director elections will also be announced. The change in format of the annual meeting in recent years has helped contain costs that ultimately benefit members while providing them even greater access to director elections.
Information about director elections and the annual meeting was also provided to members in the May and June issues of Carolina Country magazine and the Membership Matters member newsletter in those issues, as well as through www.BlueRidgeEMC.com.
Blue Ridge Electric serves some 74,000 members in Caldwell, Watauga, Ashe, and Alleghany counties as well as parts of Avery, Alexander and Wilkes counties.