Today in Mississippi March 2020 Local Pages by American MainStreet Publications

FOR MEMBERS OF ELECTRIC COOPERATIVES OF MISSISSIPPI

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MARCH 2020

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CENTRAL ELECTRIC POWER ASSOCIATION A tradition of dependable, hometown service since 1937.

107 E. Main Street Carthage, MS 39051

Carthage: 601-267-5671 • Philadelphia: 601-656-2601 Rankin: 601-829-1201 • Sebastopol: 601-625-7422

Annual Meeting set for March 17 Central Electric Power Association will hold its 83rd Annual Meeting of the Membership on March 17 at the Carthage Coliseum on Highway 16 East in Carthage. Registration will begin at 9 a.m. In accordance with the laws of the state of Mississippi and the bylaws of the association, three directors will be elected for three-year terms. Members will elect one director from Attala County and two directors from Leake County. There also will be reports given on the operation of the association for the past year, and other matters of business will be conducted. The Nominating Committee for 2020 consists of Nat Blaylock from Attala County, Jackie Harpole from Leake County and Ken Carpenter from Leake County. Candidates nominated by the Nominating Committee for re-election to the board are Earl Browning, 4873 Attala Road 3024, Kosciusko, MS 39090, from Attala County; Mike Brooks, 3377 Freeny Road, Carthage, MS 39051, from Leake County; and Danny Thornton, 4239 Ebenezer Road, Carthage, MS 39051, from Leake County. Central Electric, with the cooperation of Sta-Home Health Agency in Carthage, will provide a health fair at the annual meeting. Nurses will offer free blood pressure screenings. Services provided at the health fair will begin at 9 a.m. and continue until 10:20 a.m., when the business meeting begins. One Way Quartet will provide the musical entertainment before the meeting. Immediately following the meeting, the health fair will re-open and continue as long as interested participants remain.Each Central Electric member who registers at the annual meeting will receive a free light bulb and will be eligible to win one of the following prizes: slow cooker, coffee maker,

OFFICIAL NOTICE of the Annual Meeting of Members Pursuant to Article III, Sections 3.01 and 3.03, of the association bylaws, notice is hereby given that the annual meeting of members of Central Electric Power Association will be held in the Carthage Coliseum, Highway 16 East, on Tuesday, March 17, 2020. Registration will begin at 9 a.m. In accordance with the laws of Mississippi and the bylaws of the association, members will elect three directors for three-year terms: one director from Attala County and two directors from Leake County. Reports will be given on the operation of the association for the past year, and other matters of business will be conducted. If you cannot attend, fill out the ballot or proxy (see next page) and mail immediately in the attached postage-paid envelope. Each member who attends will receive a free light bulb. Many other valuable door prizes will be given away by drawing names from those registered. Please try to attend. This year, six names will be drawn from the mail-in votes and prizes will be awarded to them.

14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

Danny Thornton, Secretary

clock/radio, electric skillet, electric can opener, toaster, popcorn machine, ice cream machine, coffee percolator or iron. The grand prize for members who are present at the meeting will be an electric smoker. Central Electric will give away a special prize this year for any member who registers in person at the meeting or who sends in his or her proxy or ballot from this publication in the attached postage-paid envelope. You do not have to be present at the meeting to win the special prize, a 2014 Ford F150. The truck has been retired from Central Electric’s fleet of vehicles and will be given away as is with no guarantees. Remember, mail in your proxy or ballot for this year’s meeting. You do not have to be present to win. If your name is drawn at the annual meeting, we will notify you. Central Electric is a not-for-profit, member-owned cooperative based in Carthage with branch offices in Philadelphia, Sebastopol and Rankin County. The co-op maintains more than 4,000 miles of distribution line and serves more than 36,000 member-owners in central Mississippi. Central Electric’s service area includes parts of Leake, Neshoba, Attala, Scott, Newton, Rankin and Kemper counties. The bylaws of the association provide that any person, firm or corporation may become a member of Central Electric by making written application, paying the membership fee, purchasing electricity from the co-op and abiding by the rules and regulations as prescribed by the board of directors. Central Electric’s annual meeting is for you, the memberowner. So mark your calendar for March 17, and we’ll see you at the annual meeting!

STATEMENT OF NONDISCRIMINATION This institution is an equal opportunity provider and employer. If you wish to file a Civil Rights Program complaint of discrimination, complete the USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form, found online at http://www.ascr.usda.gov/complaint_filing_cust.html or at any USDA office, or call (866) 632-9992 to request the form. You may also write a letter containing all the information requested in the form. Send your completed complaint form or letter to us by mail at U.S. Department of Agriculture, Director, Office of Adjudication, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410, by fax (202) 690-7442 or by email at program.intake@usda.gov.

2020 Annual Meeting Program

BALANCE SHEETS ASSETS

2019

2018

$ 172,205,847 6,310,825 $ 178,516,672

$ 169,039,712 3,373,763 $ 172,413,475

Less: accumulated provision for depreciation 88,862,291 Electric plant, net $ 89,654,381

83,574,645 $ 88,838,830

Electric Plant In service – at cost Construction work in progress Total electric plant

9:00 a.m. 9:30 a.m. 10:20 a.m.

Registration Entertainment by One Way Quartet Call to Order, Brian Long, General Manager; Invocation; Welcome, Mayor Mary Ann Vivians; Report of Manager, Brian Long; Engineering and Operations Report; Awarding of Door Prizes; Transaction of Business; Election of Directors; Awarding of Door Prizes

12:15 p.m.

Adjournment

2:00 p.m.

Report of Election Committee

Voting Instructions If you do not plan to attend the annual meeting, please mark the ballot or proxy below, cut it out and return it in the attached, postagepaid envelope. By mailing in your ballot or proxy, you will be eligible to win the Special Prize, a 2014 Ford F150 retired from Central Electric Power Association’s fleet of vehicles. You also will be eligible to win one of the following prizes:

Other Assets Investments in associated organizations CSA stockholder loan receivable Economic development loan receivable CoBank membership Total other assests

888,327 32,475 1,923,789 1,000 $ 2,845,591

888,327 33,481 2,379,345 1,000 $ 3,302,153

Current Assets Cash and temporary investments Certificate of deposit Accounts receivable - members Accounts receivable - others Materials and supplies Prepaid expenses Other current assets Total current assets

$ 20,766,125 $ 1,000,000 6,250,632 90,334 1,778,638 159,745 532,673 $ 30,578,147

$ 21,491,864 –0– 6,234,148 75,453 1,753,644 307,971 516,080 $ 30,379,160

Deferred Charges

TOTAL ASSETS

560,053

715,954

$ 123,638,172 $ 123,236,097

EQUITIES & LIABILITIES Equities Memberships Earnings reinvested in system assets Total equities Long-Term Liabilities Notes payable Total long-term liabilities Current Liabilities Current maturities of notes payable Accounts payable - trade Customer deposits Accrued taxes Accrued unpaid vacation Other current liabilities Total current liabilities

Other Liabilities Advances from TVA Post-retirement benefits Total other liabilities

TOTAL EQUITIES & LIABILITIES

Grand Prize: electric smoker Other Prizes: slow cooker, coffee maker, clock/radio, electric skillet, electric can opener, toaster, coffee percolator, iron or electric clock. You do not have to be present to win, so please remember to mail your ballot or proxy.

I, the undersigned member of Central Electric Power Association, do hereby constitute and appoint _______________________________________________________________ (Name of person appointed agent) my agent and attorney infact to represent me at the annual meeting of members of said Cooperative to be held at 9:00 a.m. at the Coliseum in the city of Carthage, Mississippi, on the 17th day of March, 2020, and my said agent and attorney is hereby authorized to cast my vote on any and all matters coming before said meeting, or any adjournment thereof, with the same force coming before said meeting for a vote. Witness my signature this the ________ day of __________________ 2020.

786,740 86,896,476 $ 87,683,216

780,325 85,025,306 $ 85,805,631

$ 24,098,098 $ 24,098,098

$ 25,508,089 $ 25,508,089

876,855 6,747,210 2,901,286 118,612 579,548 70,102 $ 11,293,613

883,660 6,864,600 2,719,337 123,017 531,370 81,639 $11,203,623

Signature _______________________________________________________ (Each member is urged to attend the meeting, but if for any reason you cannot be present, you are requested to sign the proxy and deliver it to a member who will attend. But remember, no one can vote a proxy who is not a member of the cooperative, and no member can vote more than three proxies. So be present if possible, but if you cannot be present, be sure to sign your proxy and send it by someone to the meeting, or mail it if you prefer.)

BALLOT

Annual Meeting Central Electric Power Association

March 17, 2020 $ $

560,679 2,566 563,245

$ $

716,015 2,739 718,754

$ 123,638,172 $ 123,236,097

Note: For your ballot to count, you must vote for three directors: one director from Attala County and two directors from Leake County.

Attala County 1. Earl Browning

( ) _______________________ ( )

Leake County 2. Mike Brooks

( ) _______________________ ( )

Leake County 3. Danny Thornton

( ) _______________________ ( )

MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

Don’t forget to Spring Forward on Sunday, March 8 at 2:00 a.m.

P.O. BOX 188 • 340 Hopson Street • LYON, MS 38645

www.coahomaepa.com • cepa@coahomaepa.com

PH: 662-624-8321 FX: 662-624-8327

Energy Eﬀicient LANDSCAPING Tips

by Pat Keegan and Brad Thiessen The decisions you make about your home’s landscaping can help you stay cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter. With summer just around the corner, take a look at how strategic planting can help cool your home. Direct sunlight hitting windows is a major contributor to overheating your home during summer months. By planting trees that block sunlight, you can improve comfort and reduce your air conditioning energy use. If the trees eventually grow tall enough to shield your roof, that’s even better. The most important windows to shade are the ones facing west, followed by windows that face east. Morning and evening sunlight hits the home more directly than mid-day sunlight. Also, an eave on the south side of your home can help shade your windows during mid-day sun. A simple approach that can deliver some shade the first year is to plant a “living wall” of vines grown on a trellis next to your home. One cooling strategy is to make sure your air conditioning compressor has some plants near it. Just make sure the plants aren’t too close. The compressor should have a five-foot space above it and a two- to three-foot gap all the way around so that it gets enough air movement to do its job. 14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

Deciduous trees on the south and west sides of your home can deflect Photo Source: Alan Davey hot summer sun.

Water is becoming more precious and more expensive. When you pay your water bill, much of that cost is for the energy required to pump water to your home, or perhaps you have your own well. Either way, reducing water use saves you money and reduces energy use. So how does landscaping impact your home’s energy use and comfort in the winter? Living in a warmer climate, you would not want a wind barrier as wind flow will help cool your home. In a humid climate, leave several feet of space between landscaping and the home as air flow is necessary to avoid moisture-related home damage. These are just a few ideas to help you get started. Also note that as with any landscaping projects that require digging, remember to dial 8-1-1 to ensure all underground utility lines are properly marked and flagged before you start the work. Happy planting!

Pat Keegan and Brad Thiessen of Collaborative Efficiency Visit www.collaborativeefficiency. com/energytips for more energy efficient tips.

by Abby Berry Spring is just around the corner, and you can practically smell the freshly-cut grass. If you’re in the market to upgrade your lawn care equipment, you may want to consider electric (or battery-powered) options. Gas-powered lawn mowers and trimmers may be your go-to, but times are a changin’. Electric lawn care equipment options are becoming more popular than ever, offering consumers faster charging times, longer battery life and quieter, greener products compared to their gas-powered counterparts. Here are three ways you can electrify your lawn care this spring. Electric Lawn Mowers Electric lawn mowers have come a long way over the last few years. Early models required corded connections, ut which were tricky to manage — b the cord has been cut. Newer cordless electric mowers are certainly more expensive than gas-powered mowers, but much of the upfront cost can be recovered since electricity is a less expensive fuel than gas, and electric engines generally require less maintenance than gas engines. Cordless electric mowers typically range from $200 to $500. Electric mowers are suitable for most lawn care needs, with batteries that typically require about one to two hours to fully charge, and most batteries can run for a full hour. That said, if you have a large yard (half an acre or larger), a gas-powered option may be best to suit your needs. Electric Trimmers Cordless electric string trimmers are a great option for most lawns. Traditionally, like lawn mowers, string trimmers

have typically been powered by gas. But new versions of electric trimmers are improving and are now considered worthy competitors of gas-powered models. Cordless electric trimmers are much quieter and easier to use, but most batteries last about 30 to 45 minutes. So, if you have a lot of space to trim, you may want to consider a back-up battery or plan to work in short bursts. If you’re interested in purchasing an electric trimmer, the main factors to consider are the battery’s life, charge time and power. Costs can vary depending on your needs, but you can find a quality version for about $100. Electric Leaf Blowers After cutting and trimming your lawn, you’ll need to clear off those walkways and patios for the finishing touch. If you don’t want to deal with the maintenance of a gas-powered blower or the restraints of a corded blower, a cordless electric version is a great option. Cordless electric leaf blowers are lightweight and easy to maneuver, but they don’t offer quite as much power as gas-powered and corded blowers. If your leaf blowing and clearing needs are minimal, a cordless electric leaf blower can get the job done. Costs for a cordless electric blower vary depending on power and battery quality, but you can purchase a dependable model for about $150 and up. If you’re looking to electrify your lawn care equipment, be sure to do your homework. Search online for the latest reviews, and check trusted websites like www.ConsumerReports.org. With a little research, you’ll be well on your way to Lawn of the Month — with less maintenance, hassle and noise (and your neighbors will thank you!). MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

Where our members have the power Communicators: April Lollar & Merilee Sands For Today in Mississippi information, call 877-7MY-CEPA (1-877-769-2372) www.coastepa.com

Keeping pace with community needs We live in a device-driven world. Our smartphones, tablets, laptops and an assortment of other devices help us communicate and connect. Companies spend billions pushing out a steady drumbeat of messages and information, and we are constantly bombarded with one-way communication. But is anyone listening on the other end? At Coast Electric, we are not only listening, we are eager to hear from you. Whether you respond to a survey or social media post, send an email or simply stop by and chat in person, we thrive on your feedback. Connecting with you helps us keep pace with our community’s priorities and needs. As I work with our board, management team and employees of Coast Electric to create our cooperative’s new strategic plan, your feedback is what we value most. Because we are a cooperative, we have a different way of operating. Coast Electric exists to provide safe, reliable and affordable energy to you, the members of the co-op. Equally important is our mission to enrich the lives of the members we serve. We hope you will consider us more than your energy

provider, but instead as a local business that supports this community and powers economic development and prosperity for the people. Throughout the year, we create opportunities for you and other community members to attend co-op events. From our Annual Meeting in November, Member Appreciation Days in our offices and Energy Fairs like the ones we will have March 3, these events give us the opportunity to hear from you. Coast Electric works to continually 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. But we can only improve, adapt and effectively plan for the future if we have two-way communication.

by Ron Barnes President and CEO

Energy Fair, March 3 Mark your calendars for Tuesday, March 3, for energy fairs in our Bay St. Louis and Kiln offices. (Fairs in other counties will be held at later dates.) Our energy efficiency experts will be there to help you determine what choices can help you manage your energy use and save! Fairs will go from 8 a.m.-2 p.m. Stop by to learn about the programs and services that will help you meet your energy saving goals at your home and/or business.

t n e m y a p w Ne e l b a l i a v a n o i opt We know your life is busy. With so many commitments and tasks to complete each day, we want to provide options to pay your Coast Electric bill in ways that are convenient for you. Besides all our other payment methods, we are proud to now offer Checkout.

COAST ELECTRIC

PAYMENT METHODS

AND NOW... Pay cash at participating retailers like CVS, Family Dollar, Dollar General and more.

Visit www.coastepa. com to pay using a card or set up autopay, bank draft or echeck.

Use a kiosk to pay by cash, check or card.

Use our CE on the Go app to pay with a card or by echeck.

Stop by any office to pay with cash, card or check.

Call to pay by card. 877-769-2372

Mail a check.

What is Checkout? Checkout is a convenient, new cash-based payment application allowing Coast Electric members to pay their bills using a Checkout barcode and cash at over 50,000 retail locations across the country. Some of the locations are CVS, Dollar General and Family Dollar. Other participating retailers can be found at https://coastepa.sedccheckout.com/Lookup. Click “find locations” and enter your zip code. Once you save your barcode to your phone or print it, take it to any participating location where the cashier can scan your

barcode and accept your cash payment. And no worries — your personal account information is not visible to anyone at the retailer. The payment processor charges a $1.50 convenience fee, and your payment is immediately processed. Coast Electric does not receive any of the processing fee. If you try Checkout, let us know what you think! And if you prefer another method, we have many other convenient options to meet your needs. MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

SUMMER POWER TOU Time Change COST DECREASE Twice each year, Coast Electric makes a power cost adjustment. Power cost adjustments occur because of changes in the cost of generating power. Costs paid to Coast Electric’s power supplier, Cooperative Energy, are typically higher in the winter and lower in the summer. Coast Electric can pass along these decreased costs to members. Over a period of 12 months, your power costs remain the same. However, members will see a power cost decrease of about $6 for every 1,000 kWh used in the summer. Mississippi typically has milder winters, like this one, and long, hot summers, so Coast Electric members will have more opportunities for comfort in the months when it’s needed most. Temperatures greatly impact member-consumers’ bills since heating and cooling typically use the most energy. That means you will see higher bills in extreme hot or cold weather. We recommend managing your energy use every season, even with a power cost decrease. For tips on how you can manage your use and save, visit www.coastepa.com.

WHEN WILL THIS POWER COST ADJUSTMENT TAKE PLACE?

The summer power cost adjustment will begin April 1. WHO WILL THE POWER COST DECREASE AFFECT?

The decrease affects all member classes except industrial members.

Did you know? CE on the Go Did you know that Coast Electric’s free CE on the Go app is a great tool for outage reporting and can do so much more? Besides getting information to our dispatchers in the time it takes to make a few taps, you can also pay your bill, see your energy use, view a live outage map so you can see restoration efforts, sign up for alerts and reminders, and connect with our social media outlets. That is one hard-working app! We think once you download it, CE on the Go will quickly become one of your favorite tools to connect with us. Visit the Apple App Store and Google Play Store to download CE on the Go! 16 TODAY | MARCH 2020

If you are a member who is taking advantage of our energy and money-saving Time of Use (TOU) rate plan, remember that the summer period begins April 1. If you have water heater timers, pool pump timers or programmable thermostats, make sure to change the settings to reflect the summer peak hours of 3 p.m. - 6 p.m., Monday through Friday. If you have not taken advantage of our TOU rate plan, what are you waiting for? The plan comes with a six-month guarantee, so if you don’t save, you haven’t lost a penny. That’s a great deal!

Tips for the TOU time change: • Reset your programmable thermostats. • Reset your water heater timer. • Get outside and enjoy the warmer weather from 3-6 p.m.! • Consider cooking outdoors, too! • If you are using fans instead of your AC, remember that fans cool you, but they don’t change the

temperature of the room. Make sure you turn them off when you leave the room. • Reset pool pump timers. • Avoid doing laundry and washing dishes in peak times. Most machines have delay options so you can get a load ready and set it to wash during off-peak times.

Harvest time

When are veggies table-ready?

by L.A. Jackson With proper care, spring vegetable plantings will grow up big, strong and productive to add plenty of homegrown edibles to the dinner table. But, while waiting for these crops to mature, now is not too soon to start mentally registering harvest tips to be ready when the bountiful times arrive. Such pointers can also be helpful to folks who don’t have gardens but go to pick-your-own farms. In addition, frequenters to farmers’ markets will probably find a few of these tips useful to help select produce at their freshest and tastiest. Bell Peppers. The typical bell pepper can be picked when it is either green or red. A red bell pepper is just riper than a green one and tastes slightly sweeter. If you prefer to use a size-ometer, harvest these peppers when they are about 3 inches in diameter. Carrots. Carrots are normally ready Photos by L.A. Jackson when their orange crowns poke out above the soil line. For better storHarvest eggplants when their age, cut off all but about 2 inches of skins are shiny, not dull. the fern tops after you pull carrots from the ground. Cucumbers. Although they come in all sizes, standard cukes will, of course, be a deep green when mature. However, if a cucumber starts to show a yellow tint, it is past ripe. Eggplant. Common varieties, such as “Black Beauty” and “Classic,” should have a shiny, dark purple color and be about 4 inches in diameter. Any eggplant that has been on the plant too long will lose its shine – this also applies to the newer, fancy-colored varieties such as “Neon” and “Ping Tung.”

Okra. The better tasting (and least slimy) okra pods are snipped off at about 3 inches long. Tip: For little or no slime, when boiling okra, leave the pods whole. Green Beans. These beans are at their best when they are about 3 to 6 inches long. At these sizes, the seeds haven’t started to swell yet, and the pods are tender enough to snap easily. Leaf Lettuce. Wait until the plants are about 5 inches tall and starting to fully fill out with foliage. Then, begin your picking. Use scissors, and only take outer leaves so the plants will continue growing strongly in order to extend the harvest season. This method works well for romaine lettuce and spinach, too.

The tastiest okra pods are picked when they are about 3 inches long.

Summer Squash. Tasty crook, straight-neck and zucchini squash will be had when they are picked at about 6 inches long. Round pattypan varieties are in their prime around 4 to 5 inches in diameter.

Tomatoes. Come on – everybody knows what a ripe tomato looks like! Sometimes, however, ’maters are picked with a bit of green still showing. To turn the green to red (and make fruits fully ripe), simply place them in a cozy area indoors. A sunny windowsill won’t do because ol’ Sol’s direct rays could redden the skin but not ripen the inside of the tomato. Moderate warmth, not strong light, is the key to properly maturing a tomato. L.A. Jackson is the former editor of Carolina Gardener magazine. Article provided by Carolina Living.

Delta Electric’s new IVR phone number is 662-743-4425

✓GET ACCOUNT INFO ✓MAKE A PAYMENT ✓REPORT AN OUTAGE ✓MAKE AN ARRANGEMENT USE IT ANY TIME 24/7

January tornadoes strike Delta Electric territory It was Saturday, January 11 that a large storm moved into Delta Electric’s territory around 4 a.m. and the Association started experiencing extensive, widespread damage in Washington, Bolivar, Sunflower, Leflore, Carroll, Holmes, Grenada and Montgomery counties. The storm was predicted by the National Weather Service, and Delta Electric personnel along with outside contractors were put on notice Friday of the potential for severe weather damage on Saturday. As the storm passed through, Delta Electric had approximately 14,500 customers without power, which is about onehalf of Delta Electric’s customers. Most of the damage was centered in Washington, Bolivar and Sunflower counties and was due to five tornados that touched down in the area. The National Weather Service stated that there was a Cleveland area EF-2 tornado, a Winstonville area EF-1 tornado, a Drew area EF-2 tornado, a Rome/Parchman area EF-2 tornado and a North Greenville area EF-2 tornado. Delta Electric lost almost 500 poles in the storm. Entergy and Cooperative Energy lost numerous transmission structures in the storm, resulting in 14 Delta Electric substations being without power. After the storm passed the area, all available resources were mobilized and dispatched to the affected areas. During storm recovery, Delta Electric utilized its four construction crews along with six B&B Electric construction crews, two Chain Electric construction crews, Deviney Right of Way crews and crews from four other electric power associations: Yazoo Valley EPA, East Mississippi EPA, Natchez Trace EPA and Central EPA.

14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

By Monday, January 13 there were 600 customers without power, and by Thursday, January 16 there were 140 customers without power representing mainly irrigation wells, shops and security lights. “We sincerely thank all our employees for their many hours of hard work along with the many outside contract crews and crews from other electric power associations that assisted us with this storm restoration,” said David O’Bryan, general manager. “This effort just illustrates the cooperation that takes place among our sister Mississippi electric cooperatives along with the dedication of our many outside contractors to our recovery from severe storms,” said O’Bryan. “We have spent the last two years dodging storms and assisting other cooperatives with their storm recovery efforts, such as Hurricane Michael in Florida during 2018. Now, it was our turn to benefit from cooperation among cooperatives. I especially commend our employees for their long hours and hard work in difficult, wet conditions and accomplishing the work in a safe manner with no injuries to Delta Electric employees.”

Delta Electric Reminder:

Special capital credits early retirement program for former members and estates Capital credits allocated to a Delta Electric Power Association member always belong to that member, even if they move outside the cooperative’s service territory or if they pass away. Former members and estates of deceased members have the option to request a special early retirement of their capital credits. An early retirement offers a one-time payment of capital credits on a discounted, net present value basis. Any debts owed by the member to Delta Electric are deducted from the payment. Pursuant to Mississippi law and Delta Electric’s bylaws, Delta Electric may retain a member’s capital credit allocation to meet the capital needs of the cooperative, which may ultimately be paid through a general retirement process.

Former members and estates of deceased members have the option to request a special early retirement of their capital credits. “However, some former members may find it more convenient to receive their capital credits earlier at a discounted rate rather than waiting to receive the payment through the general retirement process, which can take up to 20 years,” said David O’Bryan, general manager. “Since March 2018, we have been offering this special early retirement program to former members and the estates of deceased members,” O’Bryan said. “Since inception, we have refunded $764,715 under this program. We want to continue to get the word out to all former members and estates that might be interested in this special retirement.” If you know of a former member or estate of a deceased member that might be interested in this early retirement program, please direct them to our website, www.deltaepa.com, where applications for an early capital credit retirement can be found and downloaded. Documentation and verification requirements for former members and estates of deceased members are also found on the website. Please email Delta Electric at capitalcredits@deltaepa.coop if you have questions about the early retirement program. If the former member has no internet access, he or she should contact Delta Electric at 662-453-6352, extension 1128, for an application and assistance. “This special capital credit early retirement program applies to former members and estates of deceased members who maintained either residential or commercial accounts, so we encourage our active members to reach out to their friends and relatives who are former members of Delta Electric,” O’Bryan said. The early retirement program does not apply to current members who receive electric service from Delta Electric.

Delta Electric Power Association

Annual Meeting of Members Tuesday, April 14, 2020, 10 a.m. Leflore County Civic Center, Highway 7, Greenwood All Delta Electric members are urged to participate in person or by proxy All members of Delta Electric Power Association are urged to attend the Annual Meeting of Members on Tuesday, April 14, 2020. Registration will begin at 9:30 a.m. with the meeting to follow at 10 a.m. at the Leflore County Civic Center on Highway 7 in Greenwood. Participation of Delta EPA members in the annual meeting is important to elect directors, receive and pass on reports covering the operation of the association and to transact other business that may come before the meeting. With a few exceptions provided by the bylaws, only members will be admitted to the meeting. Seating, however, will be available for members’ families who wish to attend.

■ What to do if you can’t attend the meeting It is important to the successful operation of the association that its members either attend this meeting in person or sign, date and send in the original proxy form that will be mailed March 6 to each member. The proxy must be executed and mailed in or delivered in person to the secretary of the association at the association’s office at 1700 Highway 82 West in Greenwood. The proxy must be received by the secretary of the association no later than April 3, 2020, to be valid. Members must vote on the original printed forms; copies will not be accepted. Any member who has misplaced the original proxy may request another by calling the nearest Delta Electric Power Association office. Under the bylaws of the association, each member is entitled to one vote. MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

CONTACT INFORMATION 601-425-2535 • www.dixieepa.com @DixieElectricMS

@DixieEPA

@dixie_electric

“Powering communities and empowering lives” Dixie Electric is an equal opportunity employer and provider.

Stay in the know; update your contact information At Dixie Electric, we rely on data for nearly every aspect of our operations, which is why we need your help. By making sure we have your most accurate and complete contact information, we can continue to provide the high level of service that you expect and deserve. Accurate information enables us to improve customer service and enhance communications for reporting and repairing outages. It also allows co-op members to receive information about other important programs, events and activities. Up-to-date contact information can potentially speed up the power restoration process during an outage. For example, the phone number you provide is linked to your service address in our outage management system. This means when you call to report an outage, our system recognizes your phone number and matches it with your account location. Accurate information helps our outage management system predict the location and possible cause of an outage, making it easier for our crews to correct the problem. While we always do our best to maintain service, we occasionally plan outages to update, repair or replace equipment. In these instances, we can provide advance notification to affected members through automated phone messages if we have your updated phone numbers. Keeping the co-op updated with your information also helps

us when there’s a question about energy use or billing. Emails are also used to notify members of annual meeting voting or programs that would be helpful to them. In addition, discrepancies on your account can be taken care of promptly if our member service representatives or billing specialists can reach you. Many of you have been members of the co-op for years, and it’s likely that your account information hasn’t been updated for some time. We recognize that many members now use a cell phone as their primary phone service, and we might not have that number in our system. At Dixie Electric, we make every effort to protect your information. We do not sell our lists to other businesses, and we have security measures in place to protect it. Please take a moment to confirm or update your contact information by using the SmartHub app, by giving us a call, or filling out the contact section on the return portion of your billing statement. By doing so, you will be helping us improve service and efficiency, so we can better serve you and all members of the co-op.

by Randy Smith General Manager

Dixie Electric’s Charity Golf Tournament benefitting the American

Cancer Society and Secret Meal Programs for Children

dixieepa.com

Thursday, March 26, 2020 Laurel Country Club For more information, call Pollyanna Magee 601-425-2535 • FAX: 601-399-5255 • email: pollymagee@dixieepa.com 14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

Supporting the community and serving others by Lydia Walters Dixie Electric joined other electric cooperatives from across the state for the Cooperative Day of Service, held in conjunction with Martin Luther King Day. The idea is for the co-ops to collectively serve their local communities on this day. Dixie Electric’s employees volunteered at three local food pantries: • On Thursday, Jan. 16, Dixie Electric’s employees stuffed bags with food for people in need and separated items for the thrift store at Samaritan Closet and Pantry in Waynesboro.. • On Monday, Jan. 20, personnel also prepared hot meals for the Christian Food Missions’ meals on wheels program in Laurel; and in Petal, employees rebuilt shelves, stocked shelves and prepared food baskets at the Petal Children’s Task Force. Cooperative Day of Service is an opportunity to get out and serve the members of our communities. Electric cooperatives are guided by seven principles. One of the principles is Concern for Community. This Cooperative Day of Service is another way that Dixie Electric’s employees live out these principles.

Pollyanna Magee, Margaret Little and Brian Blackledge worked alongside Candice Smith, Jonathan Grimes and Frank Johnston of the Samaritan Pantry and Closet in Waynesboro.

Front row: Lydia Walters, Task Force Director Demaris Lee, Pollyanna Magee, Regina Hales, Patsy Sledge. Back row: Tanner Carpenter, Chris Pittman, Gene Prince, Jonathan Hilbun and Allen Sledge volunteered at the Petal Children’s Taskforce.

Stephanie Smith, Rodney Nichols, Melanie Hall, Patty Dowling, Nub Culpepper, Christian Food Mission’s Greg Brown and Tommy Ulmer worked at the Christian Food Mission in Laurel.

MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

Co-op Connections

Business Spotlight In Laurel

Miss Behavin Miss Behavin in Laurel offers a variety of fun and stylish shoes, clothing and jewelry. Present your Co-op Connections card and receive 10 percent off one regular priced item.

In Ellisville

Burrito Express Burrito Express in Ellisville is a Co-op Connections participating business. Present your Co-op Connections card and receive a free drink with any lunch purchase.

In Hattiesburg

Four Seasons Florist Need a floral arrangement? Give Four Seasons Florist in Hattiesburg, near Forrest General Hospital, a call! Present your Co-op Connections card and receive 15 percent off your order.

Maintaining reliable service Right-of-way clearing projects underway

West Waynesboro substation:

Dixie Electric Power Association clears trees, limbs and underbrush from the area around and below the power lines, called the right-of-way. Right-of-way clearing decreases the number of outages and reduces the risk

Waynesboro, Big Creek, Dyess Bridge, Clara and Shubuta

16 TODAY | MARCH 2020

of someone coming in contact with the power lines. Clearing the right-of-way protects individuals from the hazards of electricity and makes power restoration quicker and safer for both Dixie Electricâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s members and personnel.

Buckatunna substation: Winchester, Buckatunna, Progress, Chicora and Denham

Dixie Electric linemen assist East Mississippi Electric with restoration In mid-February 12-line crew personnel from Dixie Electric Power Association went to assist East Mississippi Electric Power Association with restoration efforts after severe thunderstorms and a tornado. EMEPA had more than 5,500 members without power. The 12-man team from Dixie Electric worked in the Quitman, Enterprise, Clarke County area. Dixie Electric is part of a network of electric cooperatives from across the nation that will send line crews in the event of major power outages. The first team of linemen worked for two days to help with restoration efforts, and the second team of linemen assisted the second day. They worked mostly around Enterprise, Mississippi, which was heavily damaged by a tornado and strong winds.

PHOTOS IN FILE

Cooperation among cooperatives

Wes McDonniel, Will Pitts, Foreman Kimble Holiﬁeld, Tyler Hamby, Kaden James and Mark Ball spent two days in Clark County restoring power.

Tanner Carpenter, Michael Paul King, Ethan McLeod, Charles Houpt, Chris Pittman and Operations Manager Pat McCarthy were the second team to go to EMEPA.

Easter Bunny photos!

Thursday, April 2

Friday, April 3

Tuesday, April 7

Dixie Electric’s Petal Office Lee’s Coffee Shop, Laurel Dixie Electric’s Waynesboro Office 1312 Highway 42, Petal 409 W Oak Street, Suite 102 618 Azalea Drive, Waynesboro (601) 425-2535 (601) 583-1131 (601) 735-2072 1 – 7 p.m. 1 – 6 p.m. 1 – 7 p.m.

First child: $10 and each additional child: $5 Pets are welcome.

You will receive your photos on a USB drive.

Proceeds benefit MARCH 2020 | TODAY 17

For After-Hours Outages, Call 601-581-8600 DeKalb 601-743-2641

Louisville 662-773-5741

Quitman 601-776-6271

Member owned. Locally operated. That’s the cooperative difference.

A MESSAGE FROM YOUR CEO

Rural broadband update It has been a year since the Mississippi Legislature passed the Broadband Enabling Act and the Governor signed the bill into law. We at East Mississippi Electric Power Association have been diligently exploring the paths that would best meet our members’ need for broadband service. We completed two feasibility studies to determine the cost involving multiple broadband mediums. These include fiber to the home, wireless point-to-point and satellite connections. Your EMEPA study teams have attended numerous meetings locally, regionally and nationally, gathering the needed information from other cooperatives that have successfully entered the broadband business as well as those that are exploring the same path. As of today, it has become apparent that fiber to the home is the best option for our member needs as well as usefulness to the distribution system. While wireless and satellite services may have niche markets where they can be used, we plan to leave those technologies to other companies. We will focus our efforts on the longer-term solution of fiber. Each evaluation confirms the daunting challenges regarding technology life cycles, implementation cost, personnel training and utilization, debt coverage requirements and expense levels. Costs are projected to range from $21,500 (overhead) to $35,000 (underground) per mile of installed fiber along our existing distribution feeders resulting in a total project cost that approaches $100 million. Given the total cost of the project, EMEPA will be pursuing every avenue possible to acquire grant funds to lower the overall cost to the member. Securing grant funds, I believe, is the hurdle we must clear to make this project a go. Again, I’d like to remind you of my plea months ago. I pointed 14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

out the three “P”s of broadband. Two of these “P”s have been accomplished. The first “P” was permission. We have permission from our state government. We have permission from our national House and Senate delegation. We even have permission from you, our members. You answered our survey in a resoundingly positive response that you want and need broadband service. The second “P” is also coming into place. We have the preliminary plans available to move forward. While these plans will require much refinement over the next several months, they provide the foundation for the work to come. The final “P” is always the hardest. It represents patience. We ask for patience as we go after grant funds, develop refined plans and continue to seek a solution that is beneficial to the members we serve. Again, we are determined that anything we do must be beneficial to the members we serve and support the distribution system that so many worked to construct over the last 81 years. Any broadband solution must be affordable to our members for years to come. If we cannot accomplish these two simple goals, we should not move forward. If we can, it will not be quick, easy or without challenges but few things that empower us come without hard work and great effort.

by Randy Carroll CEO – East Mississippi Electric Power Association

EMEPA preps for 7th Annual Shoot For A Cure East Mississippi Electric Power

fundraising team at Relay For

Association is gearing up for its

Life of Lauderdale County for

7th Annual Shoot For A Cure

four years in a row, with hopes

scheduled for Friday, March 27

to raise even more in 2020.

and Saturday, March 28 at Binachi

In addition to the Shoot For

Shooting Sports in Lauderdale

A Cure event, EMEPA will be

County. The event has been such

raffling off a Glock G43X 9mm

a success in previous years that

handgun donated by Thomas

it has grown to a two-day event

Gun and Pawn and a Ruger

starting in 2020.

10/22 rifle donated by Rock

Last year, EMEPA employees and

House Gun and Pawn. Tickets

supporters raised over $20,000

are $1 and can be purchased

for the American Cancer Society

at any EMEPA office.

and the Anderson Cancer Center’s

For more information about

Cancer Patient Benevolence Fund

Shoot For A Cure or to register a

through this premier fundraising

team or sponsor, email Margaret

event. EMEPA’s Relay For Life team

Brewer at mbrewer@emepa.com

has been recognized as the top

or call 601-581-8602.

EAST MISSISSIPPI ELECTRIC POWER ASSOCIATION MERIDIAN, MS EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY POLICY STATEMENT

This policy is in conformance with the requirement of Presidential Executive Order 11246, the Age Discrimination Employment Act, the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Act, the Rehabilitation Act, the Americans with Disabilities Act, Equal Pay Act, Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and all other civil rights related to laws and regulations that have or may be enacted, as amended. It is the policy of East MS EPA not to discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, genetic information, disability or because he or she is a protected veteran. It is also the policy of East MS EPA to take affirmative action to employ and to advance in employment, all persons regardless of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, genetic information, pay secrecy, disability or protected veteran status, and to base all employment decisions only on valid job requirements. This policy shall apply to all employment actions, including but not limited to recruitment, hiring, upgrading, promotion, transfer, demotion, layoff, recall, termination, rates of pay or other forms of compensation and selection for training, including apprenticeship, at all levels of employment.

Daylight Savings

2020

Employees and applicants of East MS EPA will not be subject to harassment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, genetic information, disability or because he or she is a protected veteran. Additionally, retaliation, including intimidation, threats, or coercion, because an employee or applicant has objected to discrimination, engaged or may engage in filing a complaint, assisted in a review, investigation, or hearing or have otherwise sought to obtain their legal rights under any Federal, State, or local EEO law is prohibited. As Chief Executive Officer of East MS EPA, I am committed to the principles of Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity. In order to ensure dissemination and implementation of Equal Employment Opportunity and affirmative action throughout all levels of the company, I have selected Sherry Wallace, Director of Human Resources, as the Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Manager for East MS EPA. One of the EEO Manager’s duties will be to establish and maintain internal audit and reporting systems to allow for effective measurement of East MS EPA’s programs. In furtherance of East MS EPA’s policy regarding Affirmative Action and Equal Employment Opportunity, East MS EPA has developed a written Affirmative Action Program which sets forth the policies, practices and procedures that East MS EPA is committed to in order to ensure that its policy of nondiscrimination and affirmative action is accomplished. This Affirmative Action Program is available in the Human Resources office for inspection by any employee or applicant for employment upon request, during normal business hours. Interested persons should contact Sherry Wallace for assistance. We request the support of all employees in accomplishing Equal Employment Opportunity. ___________________________ Randy E. Carroll, Chief Executive Officer East MS Electric Power Association Dated: 01/28/2019

Spring Forward March 8 MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

EMEPA and community shine during storm response East Mississippi Electric Power Associationâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s south system, consisting of Clarke and Lauderdale counties, was struck with severe weather and damaging tornadoes on the evening of Wednesday, Feb. 5. Many are blessed to be alive in the wake of these violent storms.

16 TODAY | MARCH 2020

At the peak, nearly 6,000 members across Clarke and south Lauderdale counties experienced a loss of power. Our electric system sustained 67 broken poles, 31 of which were three-phase poles. EMEPA crews from every district office were called in to aid in repairing damage and restoring power to every member that could safely receive power. Additionally, we received assistance from Dixie Electric Power Association, Central Electric Power Association, Northcentral Electric Power Association and B&B Contractors. We are grateful to all who assisted us in helping our community recover. We have received many words of encouragement and appreciation from the community. As frustrating as it is to be without electricity, your patience and cooperation during the recovery continued to shine.

BOARD OF DIRECTORS: John E. “Jay” Gilliland Jr., President • Johnny Johnson, Vice President Mike Banks, Secretary/Treasurer • Bill Bell • Kenneth Seitz • Ernest H. “Bud” Tumlinson • Marty Crowder

1 million reasons

to thank our members Recently something happened that really makes me proud to part of an electric cooperative. In February, the 4-County Foundation returned its 1 millionth dollar back to our service territory. That’s a truly amazing milestone when you stop to think about it. Since we started the Foundation in 2015, that is 1 million dollars put back into our local communities. That’s 1 million dollars that came from the generosity of the members of 4-County who participate in our Roundup program. It’s that “Pocket Change that Changes Lives” that enables the Foundation to do the good work that it does. More than 90 percent of our membership allows their bill to be rounded up every month, and because they do the Foundation is able to positively impact so many things. The Brooksville Police Department, which was the group who got the award that crossed the million dollar mark, is a perfect example of the good that the Foundation does. Our service territory is filled with small communities like Brooksville. Those towns are very important to their residents but often struggle especially because of limited resources. That’s where the Foundation steps in. Because our members are willing to step up, we can help make sure the officers of the Brooksville PD have the tools they need to serve and protect their community. From law enforcement to volunteer fire departments to Emergency Management Agencies and more, the Foundation has granted hundreds of thousands of dollars to help purchase fire trucks, bulletproof vests, emergency radios, turnout gear and so much more that allow our first responders 14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

to serve all of us better and more safely. Education is also a primary focus of the Foundation. Almost every single school in the 4-County footprint has received some Foundation aid. Teaching is a calling, and so many of our area teachers rely on outdated equipment or lack supplies because of educational budget constraints. That is why nothing makes us prouder than knowing that many area classrooms now have stateof-the-art technology or that schools are able to offer extra programs such as robotics thanks to grants from 4-County. Finally, I want to say how much I appreciate the seven men and women who make up the 4-County Foundation Board of Directors: Kathy Howell in Lowndes County, Russell Dodds in Oktibbeha, Gale Griggs in Clay, Gwen Cotton in Noxubee, Deanie Graves in Choctaw, Sue Cooper in Webster and Columbus Jones who represents the entire service territory. They are just about the best group of people I know. None of them is compensated for their service, and they each take their role as stewards of the Foundation funds as a very sacred duty. If you know them, take a minute to thank them for their work. Again, I thank you if you are one of our members who participate in Roundup and I look forward to giving away our next million dollars.

by Brian Clark

THE

COOPERATIVE WAY 4-County Electric Power Association, and all electric cooperatives falling under the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, has committed to operate under the Seven Cooperative Principles, also known as the Cooperative Way. Here they are:

Open and Voluntary Membership

Democratic Member Control

Members’ Economic Participation

Autonomy and Independence

Education, Training an Information

Cooperation Among Cooperatives

Concern for Community

CEO/General Manager

Mike Jones named 4-County Managing Engineer 4-County Electric Power Association veteran employee Mike Jones has been named Managing Engineer at the cooperative. Mike officially began his new duties Jan. 3. He succeeds Lynn Timbrook who retired after 15 years of service. 4-County CEO Brian Clark said the co-op is excited to have Mike take on this new role. “Mike is a dedicated, capable and knowledgeable employee who will do his very best for our members and employees. His role at 4-County is an important one, and I know Mike will approach it that way. He is keenly aware of the challenges and opportunities of a highly evolving and technical electric distribution and management industry,” Brian said. “Again, 4-County and its members should feel comfortable with Mike taking the reins of our engineering team.” A graduate of Mississippi State University (MSU) with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering, Mike’s career at 4-County started while he was a student at MSU. In 1989, he

Pictures are worth a thousand words The words at the top of the banner in 4-County’s Corporate Center lobby read: “Our best reason for working safely is waiting for us at home.” But the photos below, however, tell the real story. 4-County family members — husbands, wives, children — are spread up and down and side to side on the colorful banner. The banner, with one copy in the front lobby and one copy in the training room, brings to light a continued emphasis on safety. The emphasis is the brainchild of 4-County CEO Brian Clark. “Safety is and will always be the most important emphasis at 4-County Electric Power Association. This display gives our members and employees a visual reminder of why safety comes first,” Brian said. The banners are 33 inches wide and 79 inches tall. “They make a statement — in a very visual way,” Brian added. The co-op will make a push to gather additional employee family photos soon. Additional signs will be printed. Signs will also be placed in the 4-County Starkville office.

began working as a summer helper, building sunscreens. Later, he became a part-time employee microfilming membership records and working in the meter shop. He became a co-op student in 1991. Upon graduation from MSU, he began working full-time as a systems planning engineer in 1994. He also served as system engineer and operations engineer before accepting his current position. Mike received his Professional Engineer designation in 1999. He and his wife, Shannon, live in Oktibbeha County with their sons Andrew and Alex. On his new role, Mike is quick to say that the position is not about him. “God is the most important thing to me. God has blessed me with this opportunity,” Mike stressed. He credits his co-workers and supervisors, past and present, for his development. “I’ve had a lot of people who have invested in me and helped me to grow. And I’m appreciative of them.” How is he approaching his new position? “I’m going to hold on like a hub cap,” he joked. In seriousness, he added: “We’re all in this together, helping each other,” Mike said of the 4-County team. He appreciates the forward thinking of the cooperative. “We’re not just content with where we are. We continue to strive to be better.” 4-County is an excellent cooperative, he said. “Our strength is our people.”

4-County Foundation reaches

Million

by Brad Barr Measuring the value of something can be difficult. But those associated with the 4-County Electric Power Association Foundation are having no problem celebrating the program reaching the $1 million point in awarded grants. The program exceeded the $1 million goal at the Foundation’s Feb. 17 meeting. Nearly 200 awards have been distributed to area organizations since the program’s inception in 2015. Organization representatives from throughout the co-op’s nine-county service area joined community and 4-County officials to celebrate the milestone. Suzanne Edwards of French Camp was on hand to represent the membership. The message was simple at the Corporate Center meeting: the value of Foundation awards is $1 million plus; but the value of helping your neighbors is priceless. “It’s hard to truly measure the impact the 4-County Foundation has had for organizations involved in our service area. Thanks to 4-County members, the Foundation board, the 4-County board and its employees, we’ve been able to enhance the quality of life for our members. This is a monumental accomplishment. One million dollars given away is special,” said Brian Clark, 4-County CEO. Awards were distributed at the meeting, too. Six area organizations took home grant money. The Brooksville Police Department’s grant of $4,500 for emergency response radios carried the Foundation over the $1 million mark in awards. Others receiving awards at the meeting include: Rainwater Observatory at French Camp ($6,000 for an educational programming series); Starkville Habitat for Humanities ($5,000 toward purchase of a truck); Starkville High School Robojackets ($7,000 for travel 16 TODAY | MARCH 2020

in awards!

expenses for regional competition); Progressive Foundation of Clay County ($1,080 for Accelerated Reading Program); and the Columbus Soccer Organization ($2,695 for a program for special needs children). Those receiving Foundation Awards through the years are quick to tout the program’s success in area communities and their endeavors. Emergency response organizations and other non-profits have benefitted from the much-needed funds. Back in 2015, Choctaw County Fire Services was the first Foundation award recipient. “We’re very thankful,” Chris Coleman of Choctaw County Fire Services said at the time. “We’ll be able to upgrade our equipment with this donation.” Another early Foundation recipient was the Oktibbeha County Sheriff’s Department. They received three bulletproof vests in 2015. “The 4-County Foundation was there for us,” Oktibbeha County Sheriff Steve Gladney said at the time. “Everybody now has an updated bulletproof vest. We’re thankful to 4-County.” 4-County believes in helping the communities it serves. That’s why the cooperative launched the 4-County Foundation, a community service program. Since February 2015, participating 4-County members’ utility bills have been rounded up to the nearest dollar; a $125.78 bill, for example, becomes $126. Now, that’s an average of only 49 cents per member, per month. That may not seem like much. But when you multiply those contributions by the thousands of member participants, that’s a lot of pennies! For more information on the 4-County Foundation, call 1-800-431-1544.

4-County Foundation recipients • Chickasaw County Relay for Life • Chickasaw County Sheriff’s Office • Chickasaw County 4-H • Choctaw County Fire Services • Choctaw County Constable Department • French Camp Elementary • Rainwater Observatory • Ackerman Elementary School • Choctaw County High School Alumni • Choctaw County Nursing and Rehab Center • Broken Wings/Job Corps • Ackerman Elementary School • Choctaw County Sheriff’s Office • Ackerman Police Department • Choctaw County Meals on Wheels • Simpson Volunteer Fire Department • Weir Elementary School • French Camp Elementary School • Choctaw Co. Medical Foundation • Choctaw County High School • Choctaw Friends of the Library • Town of Ackerman • West Central Clay VFD • Sally Kate Winters Home • Clay County Sheriff’s Office • Oak Hill Academy • West Point Arts Council • Relay for Life • West Point Fire Department • West Point Schools • North East Clay County VFD • South Side Elementary School • Church Hill Elementary School • Safe Haven • Clay County EMA • Central School • West Clay Elementary • The Mission • Clay Habitat for Humanity • Clay County 4-H • Progressive Foundation of Clay Co. • Columbus Arts Council • Last House on the Block • Good Samaritan Clinic • District 3 VFD • Life Choices Pregnancy Center • HEARTS After School • West Lowndes Elementary School • Relay for Life • My Book of Lowndes County • SILO INC. • Frank Phillips YMCA • Tenn-Tom Waterway Museum • Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office • Episcopal Church Good Shepherd • Father’s Child Ministry • Columbus Arts Council

• Salvation Army • Columbus Lowndes Rec. Authority • Columbus Christian Academy • Contact Helpline • RIDES • Columbus Fire Department • Greater Columbus Learning • Lowndes County 4-H • Lowndes County Council on Aging • Bread of Life Food Pantry • Town of Crawford • New Hope Middle School Robotics • Lowndes County United Way • Imagination Library • Lowndes Co. Dist. 5 VFD • Lowndes Co. Council on Aging • Crawford VFD • Town of Artesia • Dist. 3 VFD • Columbus Schools • Columbus TOPS Soccer • Monroe Co. Relay for Life • Mission Camp Macon • Dancing Rabbit DAR • Central Academy • Poe Family • VanDevender Family • Noxubee Co. Sheriff’s Office • Shuqualak VFD • Earl Nash Elementary School • Shuqualak C.A.G. • Noxubee VFD 1 • Noxubee Co. EMRs • Mennonite Service Center • Brooksville VFD • Noxubee Co. EMA • Noxubee Co. Human Resource Agency • Macon Lions Club • Brooksville Police Dept. • Bridges Out of Poverty • East Oktibbeha VFD • Starkville Pregnancy Clinic • Relay for Life • Oktibbeha Co. Sheriff’s Office • OSERVS • Oktibbeha Co. VFD 5 • Starkville Area Arts Co. • SHS Robotics Team • Sturgis Police Dept. • Oktibbeha Co. EMS • Gentry Family • Hearts of South Girl Scouts • Mrs. Smith’s Education • Maben Fire Dept. • Friends of Starkville Library • Oktibbeha Co. EMA • Salvation Army

• Starkville Symphony Assoc. • SHS Jobs for Graduation • Starkville Fire Dept. • Starkville Police Dept. • TK Martin Project Impact • MSU Autism Center • MS Regional Science Fair • Volunteer Starkville • Hearts of South Girl Scouts • Sturgis VFD • Friends of Noxubee Refuge • MSU Police Dept. • Town of Maben • Camp Jigsaw • Girls Engineering Change • Starkville Pilot Club • Summer Scholars MSU • Magnolia Amateur Radio Club • Adaton/Self Creek VFD • Central Oktibbeha VFD • Homestead Education Center • Starkville Lions Club • Habitat for Humanity • East Webster HS Band • Maben Fire Dept. • Town of Maben • East Webster Elementary • Cumberland VFD • Mathiston VFD • East Webster HS Baseball • Town of Mathiston • North MS Red Cross • Pushmataha Boy Scouts • Golden Triangle Outdoors • GTECHS • GT World Changers • Toys for Tots • Golden Triangle Regional Homeless Coalition • African American Cultural Society • EMCC Lineworker Program • Christian Women’s Job Corps • Hearts of the South Girl Scouts • MS Burn Foundation • MS School for Math & Science • MS State Rural Medical Scholars • Community Counseling Services • Forge Foundation • Boys and Girls Club of GT

Value of Foundation Awards =

$1 Million Plus

Value of Helping Your Neighbors =

PRICELESS

EMPLOYEE SPOTLIGHT

New 4-County team member announced

Price

is right for journey back to basics Sometimes living a simple life is not so simple. Just ask Jennifer Price. The 4-County Electric Power Association E-Mobile Dispatcher and her family are involved in a lifestyle transition. “We’re doing everything we can to use natural products — those things that don’t contain any chemicals or preservatives. It’s not so easy to do that,” Price said. For one thing, she stressed, it’s hard to find all natural food products and other household items like cleaning supplies. “But you can find them,” she said. “You just have to look really hard.” Why the change? “I just started noticing the ingredients in the things we use, and it disturbed me,” Price said. The transition to using natural products has been a five-year journey, Price said. “We started out small, like eliminating cleaning items that contained harmful chemicals.” And, she also places much of her focus on using essential oils. The oils she uses can be diffused aromatically, ingested in tablet form and applied topically as a cream. The goal is simple, she said. “We’re getting back to the basics, getting rid of toxic chemicals that are doing nothing to benefit us.” Jennifer believes the family’s overall wellness is improving. She has served 4-County nearly 15 years during two stints with the cooperative, from 2002 to 2008, and from

2011 to the present. Jennifer has worked in the Corporate Center and West Point offices as a cashier, substation apparatus technician and now as E-Mobile Dispatcher. She is also a backup dispatcher. Jennifer and her husband of 14 years, Kevin, live in Caledonia with their children Drew, 12, and Nora, 10. Kevin is a resident arborist serving north Mississippi and Alabama. She studied at East Mississippi Community College and has taken continuing education training through NRECA and TVPPA. “J’Lo,” as she’s sometimes known to friends, family and co-workers, is currently spending much of her time in a home remodeling project. Also, she and Kevin follow their children as they play soccer and participate in school functions. The family is very involved in the Columbus Church of Christ. Working as an E-Mobile Dispatcher is like working in the central hub of a busy, but organized train station, Jennifer said. “We see the service order from beginning to end,” she stressed. Essentially, she routes service orders, via monitoring an electronic map, to 4-County maintenance crewmembers. The 4-County team is an extended support system, Jennifer said. “It’s family,” she added. “We really do care about each other.”

Justin Davis of Lowndes County has joined the 4-County Electric Power Association team as an Apprentice Lineman 4, serving on Glen Ledbetter’s crew. Prior to 4-County, Justin worked as an Apprentice Lineman for MDR, a contract electric construction and maintenance company. He also worked for Yokohama Tire and Wade John Deere. Justin is a graduate of East Mississippi Community College’s Lineman Training Program, and he also studied industrial technology there. His hobbies include fishing. And, he is a member of Ducks Unlimited.

Welcome to the 4-County team, Justin!

We are a member-owned electric power association committed to improving the quality of life for all those we touch. Our commitment is to: • Create a service-first attitude ineverything we do; • Operate and maintain an efficient electric utility system; • Build and nurture strong partnerships with local communities by encouraging community development and economic growth; and • Compete aggressively in the marketplace. Vision: To be the leader in safety, service and value.

Energy Eﬀicient LANDSCAPING Tips

Deciduous trees on the south and west sides of your home can deflect hot summer sun.

Pat Keegan and Brad Thiessen of Collaborative Efficiency Visit www.collaborativeefficiency. com/energytips for more energy efficient tips.

Check into the 4-County Board election Key dates are upcoming for the 2020 4-County Electric Power Association Board election. Two seats, District 4 (Noxubee County) and District 7 (At-Large representing the entire membership) are on the ballot this year. The co-op’s nominating committee will announce their nominations Friday, April 3. The committee puts forth one candidate for each seat up for election. Other candidates can also run by completing

a nomination by petition. The window for collecting signatures for the petition is Jan. 6-April 3, 2020. For a petition form and more information on the process, please visit our website at www.4county.org/ nomination-by-petition-for-board-of-directors or call Jon Turner at 662-245-0708. MARCH 2020 | TODAY 19

MEP Contact Information: P: 3027 Highway 98 West • Summit, MS 39666 M: P.O. Box 747 • McComb, MS 39649

TO REPORT OUTAGES:

601-684-4011 Visit us online at www.MEPCoop.com Follow us on FaceBook and Twitter

Pay by Phone: 1-877-779-7740

2020 Annual Meeting set for March 26 by Lucy Shell Magnolia Electric Power’s 2020 Annual Meeting date has been set and will be held in the auditorium at the office building, which is located at 3027 Highway 98 West, Summit. The date is set for Thursday, March 26. The schedule of events for the meeting is that registration will start at 6 p.m. and end at 7 p.m. The business portion of the meeting will begin at 7 p.m. Entertainment, prizes and a business session highlight the meeting. The entertainment, which is Young Duncan Band, will perform for members and guests from 6:30 to 7 p.m. The business meeting includes an election of three of the Magnolia Electric Power Association’s directors. Running unopposed for their districts are: Dennis Wilson, District 1; Scott Smith, District 4; and Bruce McCaffery, District 9. Dennis Wilson is a life resident of Gillsburg. He is a deacon at the Gillsburg Baptist Church and retired manager of Amite County Co-op. He currently serves as a NRECA Credentialed Cooperative Director on Magnolia Electric’s Board of Directors. Scott Smith, a resident of the Heucks Retreat community in Lincoln County, is a beef cattle farmer, chicken farmer, and vice-president of Smith Lake Farms, which is a beef producer. He serves as a Deacon and Sunday School teacher at Easthaven Baptist Church. He is a current Magnolia Electric board member. Bruce McCaffery lives in the Midway community of Walthall County and is retired from both Sanderson Farms and as a dairy farmer. He has been married 52 years to Barbara Richmond McCaffery. McCaffery serves as a volunteer fire fighter. He serves as a Deacon at Centerville Baptist Church and also is the Adult Men’s Sunday School teacher. He currently serves as a NRECA Credentialed Cooperative Director on Magnolia Electric’s Board of Directors. Two ways to win Magnolia Electric members can participate in the Annual Meeting by signing and returning a proxy or by attending in person. Separate prizes are awarded to both those who attend the meeting and those who participate by returning their proxy. 14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

One of our young 2019 Annual Meeting attendees pulled a winning name from the box that held the names of our members in attendance. Each year, MEP awards a $500 grand prize of electricity and five $50 prizes in electricity to members who attend the meeting. Those who cannot attend, but want to be a part of the Annual Meeting can send in a proxy. There is a $500 grand prize in electricity and five $50 prizes in electricity to members who send in a proxy.

(Annual meeting notices, which include proxies, were mailed out in mid-February.) A grand prize of $500 in electricity is awarded by random drawing to some lucky member who attends the meeting and a separate $500 in electricity will go to a member who participates by sending in the proxy. A member cannot win in both drawings. An additional five names will be drawn from those sending in their proxy and five names will be drawn from those attending and will receive $50 each in electricity. To be eligible, the signed proxy must be received at Magnolia Electric by March 19 to be used at the annual meeting and be included in the drawing. A proxy is valid only for members who do not attend the meeting. Do not send in your proxy if you plan to attend the meeting. You can be eligible for only one drawing. Other business includes a financial report and reports from officers and the general manager.

Young Duncan Band to perform March 26 The Young Duncan Band has quickly evolved from a pickup band formed to entertain a farm sale into a solid, classic country and gospel ensemble. Bringing years of experience from various Mississippi towns and church music backgrounds, this blend of music makers will have you on your feet and feeling the beat. Reggie Duncan anchors the group on pedal steel guitar. Cut from the same instrumental styling cloth as Weldon Myrick, Lloyd Green and Jimmy Day, Duncan lays in the classic country sounds. Duncan is a professional studio musician who owns and manages Highway 44 Recording Studio. Joe B. Young has sung gospel, rockn-roll and country music starting as a small boy. Young co-owned and sang lead for the Providentials Quartet, based in Ruth, Mississippi, for over a decade. In demand for his Elvis impersonations, Young, who has donated his time in recent years to healing ministries and non-profits, plays rhythm guitar and sings lead and harmony vocals for the Young Duncan Band. Susie H. Kimbrough plays keyboards and sings harmony for the Young Duncan Band. Kimbrough has professional associations in the writing community, having written and published music for many years. Kimbrough has played professionally in

Why send in a proxy? By sending in your proxy, you are still participating in Magnolia Electric Power’s Annual Meeting. As a member of an electric cooperative, that is one of many things that make us different from other electric companies. If you do not think you will be able to attend the Annual Meeting, then please take the time to fill out the proxy and mail it in. Here is a checklist to help you understand the proxy: • Three candidates have been nominated from their respective districts by a nominating committee. For anyone who wants to know more about the candidates, please see the brochure that is enclosed in the proxy envelope for additional information, or read more about them in our Annual Meeting story. • If you leave the Representative’s Name line blank, then the Board of Directors will serve as your proxy. They will cast your vote for you. If you wish to direct the board to vote for a certain nominee, then you would need to check that name. Don’t forget to sign the proxy before you drop it in the mail. There is an envelope provided to mail it to an accounting firm who will oversee all the proxies. • If you wish to name someone who is attending the meeting to be your proxy then you need to put their name on the Representative’s Name line, then sign the proxy and drop it in

both Natchez and Jackson, Mississippi. Kimbrough is a Meadville native. Clay Duncan drums and provides harmony vocals for the Young Duncan Band. Duncan serves as lead drummer for First Baptist Church Summit. Duncan is a career musician, proficient in several instruments, a former bass singer with The Duncans and a bus driver for the Providentials Quartet. Cory Jones plays bass guitar and sings lead and harmony vocals for the Young Duncan Band. Jones is the regular acoustic guitar player for Olde Towne Community Church in Ridgeland, Mississippi, which is known for musical outreach. Jones volunteers for numerous community and religious music services playing any number of instruments. Lane B. Reed plays mandolin and sings lead and harmony vocals for the Young Duncan Band. Reed brings a high harmony vocal sound to the band while driving the instrumental beat on mandolin. Equally at home with gospel harmony or classic country arrangements, Reed is a resident of Meadville, Mississippi. The Young Duncan Band primarily plays specialty events, private and corporate parties, church wide socials and large festivals.

Leave blank if you want the board to serve as your proxy.

If you would like to designate a representative to serve as proxy, put their name here. They must attend the meeting.

Sign your name. the envelope that was provided and mail it to the accounting firm. • But above all matters, regardless if you let the board serve as your proxy, or you designate a proxy, you MUST SIGN your proxy before dropping it in the envelope provided or it will be invalid. Your proxy, or attendance at the Annual Meeting includes you in a drawing for prizes. MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

Don’t forget to Spring Forward on Sunday, March 8 at 2:00 a.m.

AMORY – P.O. BOX 300 • 601 North Main Street • AMORY, MS 38821 CALEDONIA – 746 MAIN STREET • CALEDONIA, MS 39740

662-256-2962 662-356-4100

LANDSCAPING

Deciduous trees on the south and west sides of your home can deflect Photo Source: Alan Davey hot summer sun.

Pat Keegan and Brad Thiessen of Collaborative Efficiency Visit www.collaborativeefficiency. com/energytips for more energy efficient tips.

Fiber construction update As a part of North East Mississippi Electric Power Association’s (NEMEPA) smart grid fiber to the home project, fiber communication huts were recently installed at Lafayette Springs, Brittany Woods, Sardis Lake, Oxford and Enterprise Substations. A fiber hut for the Thacker Heights area is scheduled to arrive in May. The huts will house essential electronic equipment used to communicate with downstream electronic devices that will eventually make up NEMEPA’s smart grid. In spite of weather delays, NEMEPA contractor crews have begun installing its smart grid fiber backbone along Hwy 6 East in the vicinity of Brittany Woods Subdivision and Campground Road (CR 217). From there, construction will continue eastward along Highway 6 toward Lafayette Springs and to the eastern edge of NEMEPA’s service territory. The build out of fiber to roads that adjoin highway 6 east will occur at approximately the same time. An additional benefit to having smart grid is the ability for NEMEPA to form a subsidiary and serve broadband to its members. North East Fiber, LLC through its product offering, SPARC, should be ready to serve its first customers during the month of May! Customers in the initial roll out of service include those along Hwy 6 and its adjoining roads, from Brittany Woods Subdivision to approximately county road 415. The rest of Hwy 6 eastward to the edge of NEMEPA service territory and into Thaxton will follow very shortly afterwards. “Weather has hampered construction, but we are pressing forward at every opportunity,” said Randall Abel, manager of engineering and operations. “Contractor crews have worked weekends in order to make up lost time. Underground construction in Tuscan Hills Subdivision is going very well. Customers in that subdivision will be able to take SPARC service as part of the initial roll out.” Additional crews are currently scheduled to begin construction within the next few months in several other parts of NEMEPA’s system including: Sardis Lake, College Hill, North Pointe, Thacker Heights, Tula, Yocona and Lafayette Springs areas. “We will have 12-13 crews on site working to install fiber for our smart grid by the end of April,” said Abel. Pre-registration at nesparc.com has been brisk with over 4,000 sign-ups already. The website allows interested subscribers to give contact information so that NEMEPA personnel can contact them when service becomes available in their area.

Lafayette High School receives award Lafayette High School was awarded a $1500.00 grant by the Tennessee Valley Authority on Feb. 11. This grant will go towards programs in the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) Department. City officials, as well as representatives from NEMEPA and TVA, were present for this presentation. 14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

For more information about Today in Mississippi, contact Michael Bellipanni at 662-895-2151.

www.northcentralelectric.com

NorthcentralEC

@Northcentral_EC

New name; same purpose February 2020 marked the 70th birthday of Northcentral Mississippi Electric Power Association. In last month’s issue of Today in Mississippi, I wrote that some changes were in the works at your electric cooperative. After much planning and preparation by our board and employees, those changes are now in place. On Feb. 20, Northcentral Mississippi Electric Power Association officially became Northcentral Electric Cooperative. Even though we have always been a cooperative, we felt as though this should be better communicated through our name and logo. Our membership needs to be fully aware that they are indeed members, and that their locally owned and operated electric cooperative runs by cooperative principals. Another announcement was the launch of our high-speed internet affiliate, Northcentral Connect. As Northcentral continues to design and build out our fiber network to better utilize smart grid technology, it only seems proper that we would attempt to

address the lack of high-speed internet access in the communities we serve. We feel as though fiber to the home is the most secure and reliable means to assure our members receive the 24-hour connectivity required in this day and age. We look forward to sharing pricing and availability in the upcoming months. Names change, but our mission doesn’t. Northcentral was formed in 1950 to provide access to essentials services. As our communities and their needs change, so must we. Here’s looking forward to another 70 years.

by Kevin Doddridge General Manager/CEO

We have an app for that! Northcentral has an app that lets you pay your bill with your smartphone keep up with multiple accounts view your bill review your billing history track your use Apps for iPhone, iPad and Android are available to download and they’re free!

14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

Search in Apple App Store or Google Play Store for

Northcentral.

OTHER FEATURES AVAILABLE • Sign up to receive email or text notifications • Great for PayMyWay customers

New name. New look. New day. It’s official: Northcentral EPA is now Northcentral Electric Cooperative. Why the change? Simple. Our new name and look better represent the forward-thinking, innovative leader that we are today. The new name also projects our greatest strength—the fact that we are a member-owned cooperative. Rest assured, we’re still the same company you’ve trusted for years. And you’ll continue to see the familiar faces of people who come to work every day with one goal: to serve you, our members. As we celebrate 70 years of service, we embrace the future with an eye on providing proactive solutions to energy needs and evergrowing technology demands. Above all, we will continue to provide you with safe, reliable electricity at the lowest possible cost. That’s something that has never changed—and never will.

northcentralelectric.com MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

Don Dickerson, Secretary Olive Branch • Accounting/Finance • Member of Goodman Oaks Church of Christ • Serving District 2 since 2011

• Credential: CCD

DISTRICT REPRESENTATIVE MAP

CHECK OUT OUR PODCAST

Nfused Video and audio episodes can be found on Apple podcasts, Podbean and our social media channels.

Phil Lachaussee Olive Branch

• Independent Insurance Agent • Member of St. Timothy’s Episcopal Church • Serving District 3 since 2015

• Credential: CCD

DESOTO O COUNTY N Hernando

Director Gold credential has been created to recognize directors committed to continuing their education beyond the CCD and BLC and who desire a tangible credential that demonstrates their ongoing commitment to advancing their knowledge and performing their fiduciary duty to the best of their ability.

The second part of the director education program, the BLC program, consists of a series of courses focusing in greater depth on specific industry and governance issues. These include issues such as risk management, power supply, parliamentary procedure, technology and policy development. A director can earn the BLC if they have: (1) completed the CCD and (2) earned 10 credits from a choice of over 20 BLC courses.Directors may attend BLC courses at any time but the BLC will not be awarded until the CCD program requirements are completed.

The first part, the CCD, is a set of five courses that focus on basic governance knowledge and the essential skills required of cooperative directors. The CCD prepares directors to fulfill their fiduciary duty as elected officials serving on behalf of their membership. Upon completion of all five CCD courses, directors are awarded the Credentialed Cooperative Director Certificate by NRECA.

Northcentral Electric Coopertative’s board members go through extensive industry training to serve our membership. The Director Certificate Programs are offered in three parts, taken in progression from fundamental to advanced. 16 TODAY | MARCH 2020

ative on

Jerry Nichols, Vice President Marshall County

Tony Taylor Olive Branch

• Logistics Owner/Operator • Ordained Minister at New Mount Gillian Missionary Baptist Church • Serving District 4 since 2016

• Retired Educator • Member of First Baptist Church of Byhalia • Serving District 5 since 1998

• Credentials: CCD, BLC

• Credential: CCD

Ricky Jones Chulahoma Community

• Funeral Home Operator • Chairman of Deacons at Chulahoma Missionary Baptist Church • Serving District 8, Marshall, Tate and Lafayette counties at-large, since 2003

STATELINE

Olive Branch

• Credentials: CCD, BLC, DGC

Pat Woods, President Byhalia

Pleasant Hill illlll

• Farmer, Agribusiness Owner • Member of Byhalia United Methodist Church • Serving District 1 since 2008

Byhalia

• Credentials: CCD, BLC, DGC

Lewisburg

Victoria Red Banks

Holly Springs

Watson

Morris Thompson Watson Community

Julie Niblett DeSoto County

• Cattleman • Member of Emery Independent Methodist Church • Serving District 6 since 2013

• Retired Manager, MC Herrington Distributors • Member of Maples Memorial United Methodist Church • Serving District 9, DeSoto County at-large, since 2015

• Credential: CCD

MARSHALL COUNTY

• Credentials: CCD, BLC, DGC

Chulahoma

TATE COUNTY

Joan Childress Marshall County

• FedEx Retiree, Volunteer • Member of Wyatte Baptist Church • Serving District 7 since 2004

• Credential: CCD

Harmontown

LAFAYETTE COUNTY

MARCH 2020 | TODAY 17

Columbia: 601-736-2666 Hattiesburg: 601-264-2458

Purvis: 601-794-8051 Wiggins: 601-928-7277

To pay bills or report outages:

855-2PRVEPA (855-277-8372) Visit us online at www.PRVEPA.com Member owned. Locally operated. That’s the cooperative difference.

RIGHT-OF-WAY maintains reliability and aesthetics

In almost 81 years, Pearl River Valley Electric’s distribution system has grown to meet the demand of over 50,000 members. The system now includes more than 6,000 miles of power lines throughout a 12-county service area. To maintain the integrity of the system and to ensure public safety, PRVEPA runs an extensive right-of-way program. We want members to understand that maintaining right-of-way (ROW) is not an inconvenience, it’s a necessity. Controlling vegetation within our ROW assures safe access for employees when they are troubleshooting outages and repairing downed power lines. Clearing brush and other low-growing vegetation is accomplished by a combination of trimming and cutting trees, bushhogging and herbicide application. We use off-the-shelf, nonrestrictive herbicides because they are effective, economical and environmentally-friendly. They are not harmful to humans, pets or livestock. Managing vegetation in this way also allows native grasses and wild flowers to grow, thereby improving the aesthetics and wildlife habitat along the ROW. Contract crews will be clearing trees, removing underbrush and mowing ROW in the following areas in the upcoming months:

PURVIS DISTRICT Little Black Creek Water Park area, Lawler Hollow, Talowah, Highway 11-Lumberton, Talowah Cutoff, Lawler Rd., Elliott Rd., Hendrix Rd., Corinth Rd., Hendrix Rd., Cowpoke Lane, Beach Rd., Bud Elliott Sub., Corinth Cutoff, Timber Creek, Purvis to Baxterville Rd., Lake Hillsdale, Springhill, Olive Church, Rousefield, Birdline, Lavelle Ladner Rd., Clay Allen Rd., Red Top Rd., Dubose Rd., Gumpond Beall, Lloyd Ladner Rd., Hurt Rd., Bass Lane, Otis Jones Rd., Si Jones Rd., Grady Brown Rd., Lower Airport, Ben Byrd Rd., Baxter Rd., Donald Hale Rd., Highway 13-Lumberton, Springhill Rd., Bob Tyner Rd., Ott Stanford Rd., Wayne Stewart Rd., Wayne Pardue Rd., Bilbo Holston Rd., John Smith Rd., Hillsdale Gumpond, Stanford Lake, H Burge Rd., Slade Woodward Rd., Hoadley Rd., Joe Reyer Rd. HATTIESBURG DISTRICT Richburg Rd. (between Sullivan Kilrain Rd. and Brooks Rd.), Carter Circle, the North end of Tatum Camp Rd., Sullivan Kilrain Rd., Hodge Rd., Jervis Mims Rd., Poplar Rd., Highway 11 between Peterbilt and Timberton WIGGINS DISTRICT Highway 49, Fruitland Park, Benndale Rd., Cross Roads, Fairley Bridge Rd., Florida Gas Rd., Highway 29, Janice, Janice to Brooklyn Rd., Paret Tower COLUMBIA DISTRICT Sumrall area, Highway 44, J D Hatten Rd., Jones Cemetery Rd., Rock Hill Rd., Seminary-Sumrall Rd., Gates Bridge Rd., North of Columbia, Highway 35 N., Old Highway 35 N., Delancey-Robbins Rd., Highway 44, Highway 98-Foxworth, Highway 98 Bypass-Columbia

Pearl River Valley Electric honored for Round Up for Education Pearl River Valley Electric Power Association was honored by the Pinebelt Foundation for its members’ contributions to area students through its Round Up for Education scholar’s program. PRVEPA was given an award at the Faces of the Foundation awards ceremony in Hattiesburg. Since 2012, Pearl River Valley Electric Power Association has given a financial boost to almost 1,500 students throughout 14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

(L-R) Mike Dixon, executive director of the Pinebelt Foundation; Randy Wallace, general manager of Pearl River Valley Electric; Rebecca Brown, community and economic development coordinator for PRCC

PRVEPA’s 12-county service area. In that time, PRVEPA has collected and deposited more than $1.3 million through its Round Up for Education scholar’s program that is funded by members who round their bills up to the nearest dollar each month. The money goes toward scholarships for members, their spouses or children or legal dependents who are attending a Mississippi community college.

Plan landscaping correctly Planting your landscaping properly can ensure that it does not adversely impact Pearl River Valley Electric’s infrastructure. PRVEPA’s system has ROW widths ranging from 30 feet (for most single-phase lines) to 50 feet (for 3-phase lines). When landscaping nears power lines, choose shrubs or small trees and keep them spaced outside of the right-of way. (see chart)

There are also restrictions about what can be planted around pad-mounted transformers and other underground facilities. Be sure to allow the required clearance shown on the transformer to provide adequate access to equipment.

Plan before Planting 20-30 FEET FROM LINE Flowering Dogwood, Japanese Lilac, Kousa, Dogwood, Ornamental Crabapple, Redbud, Stewartia

SMALL TREES

Plant SAFE

To be specific, do not plant anything closer than 10 feet from the transformer’s lock side and no closer than 4 feet on the remaining sides. If vegetation is planted within these areas, PRVEPA crews may have to clear enough space to create a safe working environment to perform maintenance operations. Remember, before doing any landscaping in the vicinity of your transformer, you must call 811 (the Mississippi one-call number) at least two working days before breaking ground. By then, all underground utilities can be marked with flags or paint. If you have any questions regarding ROW clearances, maintenance and proper landscaping, please contact your local PRVEPA office.

30-35 FEET FROM LINE Bradford Pear, Carolina Silverbell, Golden Raintree, Ornamental Cherry Saucer Magnolia, Serviceberry, Sourwood, Winter King Hawthorne

MEDIUM TREES

40-45 FEET FROM LINE Red Maple, Shagbark Hickory, Lacebark Elm, White Oak, Hemlock, Spruce

LARGE TREES

Shrubs and structures should be 10 feet away from transformer doors and 4 feet away from the sides.

Applications for Community College Scholars program due August 7, 2020 • Applications are available at PRVEPA offices and at www.PRVEPA.com. • Completed applications must be postmarked or emailed by August 7. • Scholarship recipients must be a PRVEPA member, spouse or child of a member participating in the Round Up program.

• Recipients must be full time (12 hours or more per semester) freshmen students enrolled in academic or career-technical programs.

• Scholarship funds will be credited to each student’s college account — no checks will be issued to individuals.

• Scholarships should be awarded by the end of September. Students must be enrolled in good standing at the time funds are released to the colleges. Funded by members who are rounding up their monthly bills, these scholarships are intended to assist students who will attend a Mississippi community college as a freshman this fall.

More information is available at www.PRVEPA.com. MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

CONTACT INFORMATION: PONTOTOC P.O. Drawer 718 • 12 South Main Street, Pontotoc, MS 38863

662-489-3211 • Fax: 662-489-5156 BRUCE P.O. Box 415 • 129 South Newberger Street, Bruce, MS 38915

662-983-2727 • Fax: 662-983-1335

Pontotoc Electric gains place in history with first pole setting By Chuck Howell and Jennifer Johnson As we celebrate 85 years in the business, Pontotoc Electric takes a look back at how we got started, and the important role this company played in bringing electricity to the areas we serve. When most people reflect on the beginnings of rural electrification in America, they are probably inclined to believe it began with President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s creation of the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) by executive order on May 11, 1935. But according to Morris Llewellyn Cooke (1872-1960), the first administrator of the REA, the genealogy of the rural electrification idea, and the story of its development can be attributed to the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and three pioneer electric cooperatives, all located in northeast Mississippi. Alcorn County Electric Power Association, Pontotoc Electric Power Association, and Prentiss County Electric Power Association “proved of definite value to the development of the national rural electrification program,” according to Cooke. While populated urban areas of the United States began to receive “central station” electricity as early as 1882, the rural electrification effort remained stalled until the mid-1930s. Between 1910 and 1935, the number of farms in the United States with electricity had risen from only two percent to 11 percent. Most private power companies proved unwilling to include rural America in their future electrification plans throughout much of the 1910s and 1920s due to the costs. 14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

In Mississippi, the story of rural electrification was much bleaker. Only nine-tenths of one percent of the farms in Mississippi had electricity. That began to change, however, when the Tennessee Valley Authority Act was passed on May 18, 1933. While Roosevelt was still governor of New York, he became convinced that widely-distributed electricity at attainable rates would exert a powerful social influence, and that the use of electricity for pumping water was at least as important as for providing light. The TVA Act directed the TVA board of directors to give preference in the sale of surplus power to states, counties, municipalities, and “cooperative organizations of citizens or farmers,” and authorized the board to construct electric transmission lines to “farms and small villages” in order to “promote and encourage the fullest possible” development of rural electrification. It is significant to note that in January 1934, Pontotoc, Mississippi was chosen as the starting point over all other areas in the Tennessee Valley. And on January 22, 1934, TVA set that first pole to serve a rural area in Pontotoc. That first transmission pole erected one mile west of downtown Pontotoc serves as a monumental reminder of the significance of the Tennessee Valley Authority in the history of rural electrification in America and as a salute to Pontotoc, Mississippi, where this momentous process began.

Pontotoc Electric warns customers of scam payment sites Pontotoc Electric is warning customers of scams on the Internet that direct customers to another site to make their electric bill payment. Some of the websites even use the Pontotoc Electric logo to make them appear official. These alternate payment sites may hold a customer’s payment for days or even weeks before sending the payment to Pontotoc Electric. In some cases, payment may not ever reach Pontotoc Electric. Customers should protect themselves from these scam sites by making payments only through www.pepa.com. Pontotoc Electric General Manager Chuck Howell said alternate sites may cause unnecessary problems for PEPA members. “These sites may hold a customer’s money for a period of time causing the customer’s account to fall into collections. When a customer pays using a scam site, we don’t know they’ve paid, and that can negatively impact the customer’s bill and possibly even their service. If a customer is presented with a method of payment that is different than how they’ve paid in the past, they should use caution. It could be an .

effort to send them to another site. As the old saying goes, ‘If something doesn’t look right, it probably isn’t.’ ” Pontotoc Electric provides the online payment option through its official website to offer convenience to its customers while safeguarding their information and processing their payments in a timely manner. Customers who have any questions about making their online payments may call 662-489-3211 (Pontotoc) or 662-983-2727 (Bruce).

WATTS ? G N I K O CO Congo Squares

Skillet Burgers

Michal Pennington,

Tessie Campbell,

1 box light brown sugar 2 c. self-rising flour 1 tsp. baking powder 3 eggs 1 tsp. vanilla 1 c. oil 1 six-oz. pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips

2 lbs. ground beef 1 bell pepper Chopped onion

General Accounting Clerk

Mix together light brown sugar, flour, and baking powder until most of the lumps are gone. Add eggs, vanilla, oil, and mix together. Then stir in semi-sweet chocolate chips. Pour into 9 x 13 pan and cook at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Service Clerk

1/2 bottle ketchup a pinch of sugar 1 Tbsp. melted butter

Brown hamburger meat or ground deer meat and drain. Saute bell pepper and onion in butter (may use frozen onion). Pour bell pepper and onion mix in meat and add about 1/2 bottle of ketchup and pinch of sugar. Stir and let simmer for about 10-15 minutes. Serve on hamburger buns. (This dish is kind of like Manwiches.) MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

BRIAN HUGHEY

General Manager & CEO LORRI FREEMAN, APR Manager of Public Relations

Energy Tips

AMANDA PARKER Public Relations Specialist For more information, call 601-947-4211, 228-497-1313 or visit singingriver.com. @singingriverelectric @SRECooperative SRE is an equal opportunity employer and provider.

Bringing power and energy services to local communities

Simple savings

A MESSAGE FROM YOUR CEO

Recent cost of service study calls for rate adjustment For the first time in six years, Singing River Electric Cooperative is adjusting the monthly customer charge (flat monthly charge) for the residential and small commercial classes of members. This change was Brian Hughey guided by the results General Manager obtained from the & CEO cooperative’s recent cost of service study. It is the responsibility of management and the board of directors to examine rates periodically to be sure they are equitable and reasonable. The cost of service study gives insight and guidance allowing the cooperative to fulfill its obligations to members and cooperative lenders. The study is the primary tool used to accomplish this goal. Beginning March 6, 2020, residential members will see a $3 per month increase to their bill. Similarly, the small commercial members receiving single-phase electric service will see a $1.50 per month increase. These changes will result in a $25 per month customer charge for both member classes. The monthly customer

charge offsets the fixed costs of operations such as the cost of building and owning electric facilities, the cost of the metering system, the cost of billing and the cost of maintaining service. All of these costs are incurred each month regardless of whether one kilowatt-hour of electricity is ever used. The per kilowatt-hour charge will not change for either member class. Residential rates were nearly 14 percent below national average this past year. Even after the adjustment, Singing River Electric will have one of the lowest customer charges and some of the lowest rates in the region. While virtually all costs of living continue to rise, we pride ourselves in how little member bills have changed through the years, as can be seen in the table below. As you know, your power bill is comprised of different variables which are explained on our website. Additionally, the site contains a userfriendly bill calculator that breaks down your monthly bill in full detail. Singing River Electric’s adjusted rates will be posted on our website at singingriver.com beginning Monday, March 2. We value our members and will always place a strong emphasis on providing you with exceptional service at the lowest cost possible.

SRE Residential Rate Comparison for 1,000 kWh on a 31-day cycle

Year

March 2014

March 2016

March 2018

March 2020

Total Bill

$120.22

$114.35

$117.25

$119.29

14 TODAY | MARCH 2020

Josh Havard Energy Services Representative joshhavard@singingriver.com

When conducting energy audits this time of year, we often encounter homes operating heating or cooling when there is no need. Pay attention to your unit’s schedule. Turn off the air or heat and open a window if the weather is comfortable. Heating and cooling accounts for up to 60 percent of your electric bill.

In addition to turning off the heating or cooling units, you can also hang clothes outside to dry in the sunshine and grill out to give your oven a break. Little things such as these can make a big difference on your power bill. For more simple savings, download the 101 Ways to Save brochure on our website at singingriver.com/ ways-to-save. Also, join our efficiency conversations on Facebook and Instagram (SingingRiverElectric) and Twitter (SRECooperative). Visit singingriver.com or energystar.gov for more tips.

Nick Greer Right-of-way Coordinator

Bare-root Seedling Giveaway Spring is in the air and Earth Day and Arbor Day are fast approaching. Singing River Electric would like to help by giving away 1,000 bare-root, hardwood seedlings.

Trees add tremendous value to our homes and communities. Come visit us at one of three locations below and receive up to three free bare-root seedling trees to plant at your home.

Giveaway Locations: March 14

March 19

April 4

Second Saturday Main Street Lucedale, MS 5-8 p.m.

Singing River Electric Sand Hill Office 39276 Highway 63 N Richton, MS 3-5 p.m.

Earth Day Event George Martin City Park Senior Center Gautier, MS 10 a.m. â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Noon

Planting Instructions 1. Carefully untangle roots, and soak in water 3-6 hours. 2. Dig a hole, wider than seems necessary, so roots grow outward without crowding. 3. Plant tree deep enough to bury roots. Do not use fertilizer or soil amendments. 4. Shovel in dirt firmly but not too tight. 5. Water tree.

Hold that Shovel!

Think Safety first.

Look up and live. It is important to consider the mature height of any tree you plant. Will it grow too close to a power line? Mississippiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 10-foot Rule designates

a 10-foot clearance around each power line. Trees that grow into power lines can pose a threat of electrical shock to all that come in contact with the tree.

MARCH 2020 | TODAY 15

Co-op Days of Service

inging River Electric in conjunction with Cooperative Energy, Coast Electric, Dixie Electric and Yazoo Valley Electric, participated in the 2020 Cooperative Days of Service. This event is held annually in honor of Martin Luther King, Jr. Electric cooperative employees volunteer during the weeks of MLK’s birthday and holiday in their local communities throughout the state to show the importance of serving others. Twenty SRE employees answered the call for service by spending 10 hours cleaning flower beds and trimming trees at Greene County High and Leakesville Elementary and by serving lunch and cleaning facilities at Our Daily Bread in Pascagoula. “It was a great opportunity to take time to give back to the community,” said SRE Fleet Coordinator Fred McCann, who led the projects in Greene County. “At first, I wondered if removing some trees and sprucing up flower beds would

make a difference, but the smiles and handshakes we received made me understand even more what Dr. King meant by, ‘What are you doing for others?’” He added, “So yes, it made a difference.” The other participating cooperatives completed projects including cleanup efforts removing 93 bags of trash and debris, volunteering at Habitat for Humanity and food pantries, as well as delivering care packages and lunch at the Salvation Army and other ministries. The Cooperative Days of Service was created by Cooperative Energy and its member systems to empower employees and give them an opportunity to give back and serve others in our communities. “Cooperative Energy and our member systems are always looking for opportunities to give back in the places we call home,” said Cooperative Energy Executive Vice President and Chief Communications Officer Christa Bishop.

For more information, visit singingriver.com/my-community and join the conversations about service in our communities on Facebook and Instagram at SingingRiverElectric and Twitter at SRECooperative.

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These acts of service done across the state empower employees to give back and serve others.

FABLAB Jackson County

Providing STEM summer camps SRE and CE support STEM education locally Cooperative Energy, SREâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s energy provider, donated funds in honor of their recent dedication of a gasfired engine power plant at its Benndale Station in George County. This addition is part of a smart power generation solution and will provide flexibility for increased integration of renewable generation.

Singing River Electric and Cooperative Energy recently donated a collective $5,000 to Jackson County FABLAB to host two STEM education summer camps in 2020. These summer camps will be held in the East Central community and will reach students located in Hurley, George County and the surrounding area. The funds also allow the mobile FABLAB to visit schools in the East Central community and George County during the school year.

As an electric co-op, Singing River Electric is member-driven and built by the communities we serve. For more information on how we partner with our communities, visit singingriver.com or join on Facebook/ Instagram (SingingRiverElectric) and Twitter (SRECooperative).

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Smart way to report outages The quickest way to report a power outage is the SmartHub app. It only takes seconds to not only report your outage, but get it right into the system for repairs. Visit singingriver.com/smarthub.

Spring savings start here

Find tips to stay comfortable, save money and more by visiting singingriver.com/ ways-to-save and joining our efficiency conversations on Facebook and Instagram (SIngingRiverElectric) and Twitter (SRECooperative).

THE

GROWING LUNCH

SCHOOL GARDEN GRANT

PLANTING SEEDS OF HEALTHY HABITS AND VALUABLE SKILLSETS Above: Pleasant Hill Elementary student in DeSoto County tended the school’s garden. Photo by Pleasant Hill Elementary.

by Sandra M. Buckley Gipson shared. “These students took the produce they grew Promoting farm-fresh food for students has been a longin their garden and had a farmers market at their school.” standing effort of the Mississippi Department of Agriculture This Madison school’s principal, Debra Houghton, is pleased and Commerce (MDAC). An important way it is accomplishing with the benefits that have stemmed from the grant. “Mannsthis goal is through the Growing Lunch School Garden Grant. dale Upper’s gardening curriculum incorporates principles that The grant’s statewide platform provides hands-on learning not only involve planting seeds but nurturing those seeds into opportunities for students centered around local agriculture, becoming plants that produce food for our students and staff,” gardening and nutrition. “It provides a great opportunity for she said. “Our program is designed our youth to learn where their to help students connect agriculfood comes from as well as how ture to the grocery store and to to grow their own food,” said their own dinner table.” MDAC Commissioner Andy GipIn Olive Branch, Pleasant Hill son. “Students that are actively Elementary used the grant to fund involved with the planting and a muscadine vineyard and blackactual growing of the produce in berry and strawberry patches. One the gardens are more likely to be way the students took part was enthusiastic about eating the fruits by weighing the fruit and then and vegetables.” making jams, jellies and preserves, Since 2014, MDAC has awarded MDAC Commissioner Andy Gipson visited Mannsdale Upper Elementary School in Madison County to present the Growing Lunch School Garden which all incorporated what they 77 grants to schools across MisGrant. Photo by Mannsdale Upper Elementary School. were learning in math. “The MDAC sissippi, from preschools and daycares to grades K-12. The grants, which are up to $500, provide Garden Grant provided the necessary boost to get our program off the ground,” said teacher Todd Willis. “Our specialty crops schools the resources to start a garden by purchasing items created community interest and increased parental involvesuch as soil, seeds, fertilizer, stakes, lumber, tools, gloves, water ment in our school. Now, four years after the planting, we have hoses and irrigation supplies. Schools with existing gardens a beautiful productive vineyard on our school property.” can use the grant to expand and purchase needed supplies. For children across Mississippi, the Growing Lunch School For students, the gardening experience is designed to supGarden Grant is successfully planting seeds of healthy habits plement their educational curriculum. “We have seen teachers and valuable skillsets. utilize the school garden through a variety of subjects and “Not only are these students sharpening their academic skills classrooms, from physical education, art, science, math, culinary and learning many life-long lessons, they are getting to see arts and more,” Commissioner Gipson said. “Teachers have been very creative in utilizing the gardens to incorporate every- first-hand the importance of agriculture,” added Commissioner Gipson. “My hope is that through this experience, these day lessons into a more hands-on approach that often reaches students will gain an interest in agriculture and take advantage students on different levels. We have received comments that of the many career opportunities in agriculture in their future.” it has helped with behavior issues in the classroom, students have taken on more responsibility and it has enticed students This program is funded by the USDA Specialty Crop Block to learn and be more creative!” Grant Program. Grants are available on a first come, first Schools creatively employ this program too, from parent serve basis, and only one grant can be awarded per school. involvement to open houses and farmers markets. “I am so impressed when I see schools like Mannsdale Upper Elementary Visit www.mdac.ms.gov or contact Susan Lawrence at susan@mdac.ms.gov for more information. doing such amazing things with their garden,” Commissioner MARCH 2020 | TODAY 19

It is commonly said that we are a product of our environment. Where you spend your time and with whom you spend it, cultivates a narrative around you, a story about who you are and what kind of person you are. The coming of Spring inspires new growth. For some, this time of year means freshening up or cleaning up the home and yard. If you are like me, clutter can be maddening, whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s in the home, the yard or the office. Taking the time to address the mess is not always easy, but the weight that seems to be lifted afterwards reminds me of the impact clutter has to my state of mind. Unorganized desktops, overflowing email boxes and stacks of files really can and do create anxiety and other negative emotions. Interestingly, medical studies show that clutter can compromise our thoughts of home, work and satisfaction with ourselves. If our environment impacts the kind of person we are, then what does the environment you live and work in say about you? The new growth of Spring means that Mississippians get to enjoy the blooming of flowers and oak trees. For Southern Pine, this new growth forces us to turn our attention to vegetation management. Speaking of clutter, my mind goes to our rights-of-way and the continuous struggle we face with trees, limbs and underbrush that have the potential to compromise the integrity of the system during storms. Like spring cleaning of our homes

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and offices, we must keep the rights-of-way trimmed if we want the power system to operate reliably. If the right-of-way isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t kept clear, Mother Nature will quickly cause outages that might have been prevented. When you see our folks out trimming, please keep in mind how important this work is in bringing the power to your life. While it is never easy to set aside the time to clear out the old and make clean space for the new, it must be done. Allow me to encourage you to look at how clutter and disorganization may be affecting you. Just like the unkept right-of-way creates hazard and interrupts the flow of power, your unkept workspace or home can have a negative impact on you. We think you will agree with us on the old adage that an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. When you see the crews out working in your area, please remember that the next time Mother Nature goes on a rampage, this preventive work may help keep your lights on. Your quality of life is important to us at Southern Pine, and I hope this year brings new growth for you and your family.

Have you ever come home after a long day at work and noticed a mess of limbs and debris near a rightof-way? Odds are, if you live in a rural area near a power line, you may have experienced this frustration. Blood pressure rises, temper flares, and you are frustrated with Southern Pine. Matters might have been made worse if it has been raining and there are ruts staring back at you. We realize no amount of explaining that we understand or asking you to be patient helps. So why on earth does this happen? What is Southern Pine thinking? Southern Pine maintains a huge electrical system with miles of power lines that twist through some rough terrain and meander along roadways. One crucial element to providing reliable electric service is to have well-trimmed rights-of-way. Wind, rain, lightning, ice, and sometimes even snow, do not mix well with trees and power lines. One tree limb falling on a line has the potential to knock out power to thousands of members. It is impossible to find every tree or limb that may be a threat when the next storm strikes. The ever-present need to have well-trimmed rightsof-way is a daily challenge. Added to the mix is the fact that the safety of our crews depends a lot on the amount of debris and destruction that can occur during a storm. Having to remove tree limbs in the middle of the night is a reality for crews before they can begin the process of picking up the lines and restoring power.

right when weather conditions are normal or even slightly dry. Whenever possible, the crews trim the limbs back at least 20 feet from any “hot” wires. Trimming rightsof-way is a year-round process; if stopped, we would rapidly fall behind schedule. Depending upon the terrain and vegetation, crews use both bucket trucks and large Jarraff side trimming machines. Trimming crews always begin at a substation on a circuit, and they trim to the end of that circuit before starting on another one. When the right-of-way is trimmed, electric service is more stable, and the co-op is better equipped to restore power quickly when storms roll through the service area. Southern Pine has the responsibility to provide reliable electric service to our members. The only way that is possible is by keeping rights-of-way well-trimmed. We take our mission seriously and have great pride in our work. If the scheduled, controlled work of keeping rights-ofway trimmed does not occur, then the mess that Mother Nature can make will be much worse and take longer to clean up. An hour without power is inconvenient, a day is tough, and any longer than that will have you looking at those trees differently. We hope that the explanation of what we do, and the reason why, will help when you are looking at the necessary mess that is caused by trimming rights-of-way. This is just one more way that we bring the power. Thank you.

So how does Southern Pine handle that? We proactively work to keep rights-of-way trimmed. In order to do that, we operate on approximately a fouryear rotation of side trimming. In some cases, the cycle is slightly longer, but many times that schedule is just

WHY WORRY ABOUT TRIMMED RIGHTS-OF-WAYS? According to statistics provided by AccuWeather, Mississippi experienced historic tornado activity in 2019. Averaging 45 tornadoes a year, Mississippians were hit with more twisters last year than each of the last four full years. Across the United States in 2019, tornadoes, resulted in $11 billion indamages and left an estimated 321 people dead. Mississippi had 44 conﬁrmed tornadoes on April 18, 2019, and 13 on April 13th, including three EF2s. In 2011, we suffered through 131 tornadoes.

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Nancy joined the Southern Pine team in 1981 working in the Construction, Right of Way and Service Department. Her duties varied, but she quickly learned the data entry requirements for transportation and took lead in that area. Because of her expertise, in May of 1999 she was named as Payroll and Transportation Clerk for the Taylorsville District and was soon named as Headquarters Payroll and Accounting Specialist. Over decades of service to employees and our members, Nancy has demonstrated her strong work ethic and is a key contributor to the Finance Department and the overall success of Southern Pine. Always supportive of co-workers, focused and meticulous, her logical approach has proven to be a calming force during countless chaotic emergencies that require a level head. Nancy makes sure that employees are paid on time regardless of the forces of Mother Nature and late timesheets. Southern Pine employees have a special level of respect and appreciation for Nancy’s work ethic and the wealth of information she brings to the table. Rarely do you find someone as trusted among her peers as with Nancy. As the old saying goes, “If she says it, then you can take it to the bank.” Reliable and honest, Nancy influences employees with her quiet demeanor. Family and community oriented, Nancy and her husband have two children and three grandchildren. Members of Taylorsville First Baptist Church, Smith County has been home for decades. Her family enjoys the benefits of a small, friendly town where they can spend quality time with those precious grandchildren. Leading by example,

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Nancy has made a difference in her family, community and at Southern Pine. Thank you, Nancy, for all that you do. Your dedication, loyalty and love for Southern Pine and our employees are appreciated.

Southern Pine’s Board of Directors is comprised of 12 people, representing 11 counties, charged with managing the business and affairs of the co-op. The burden of protecting our members and the facilities of Southern Pine is a heavy responsibility. Required to have a strong business mindset, each board member must weigh all possible consequences before making any decision.

Southern Pine’s directors do a great job of taking care of business, but they do so much more. They are members. Any decision they make affects them, their families and friends. They also work and contribute to the county they represent, contributing to economic development, serving in the community and taking care of family and home. Beginning this month, we will feature one director and introduce them to our members. This month, we would like to tell you a little bit about Billy “Mickey” Berry. Mickey represents approximately 8,530 members in Simpson County. Aside from work, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Debbie, and their grandchildren. Having served as a supervisor for Simpson County before retiring, he is well known throughout the county and has been instrumental in numerous economic development projects and with helping folks in his county, as well as the state. Mickey runs a family farm, owns a timber business and has been known to make some time for deer hunting. One hobby that sets him apart from others is that he loves to restore old 18-wheeler trucks. Tinkering with parts, paint and the truck’s body helps him clear his mind and provides a time of relaxation and hours of fun with his family. Known for his quote, “Let the low-side drag,” he is always optimistic that the “ruts and ditches of life” will be cleared away, given enough time to smooth out the rough spots. Those of us who know him and have the privilege of working with him at Southern Pine know that Mickey expects the best possible outcome and will always focus on the hopeful side of any situation. We are thankful for his years of service to our members and Southern Pine. We know that he, along with the 11 other directors, always has our members’ backs. Exemplifying that we should always treat others as we want to be treated, his strong work ethic, humble attitude, and willingness to go the extra mile gives us confidence in his guidance as we Bring the Power to our members. Thank you, Mickey, we appreciate all that you do. MARCH 2020 | TODAY 17

Being a member of Southern Pine Electric Cooperative is different than simply being a customer. Members are invited to be active in the cooperative. As a member, one way you can be involved and help your community is by donating through a new program called Operation Round Up. With an average of 50 cents a month, you can help area charities, schools and other community service projects. This new program, beginning in April, will automatically round up membersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; bills to the nearest dollar. For example, if your bill is $145.50, it will be rounded up to $146. On average, members will donate around $6 annually per account, to the program. While this may not seem like a lot, if 85 percent of the Southern Pine membership participates, approximately $330,000 annually will be donated through Operation Round Up. This can make a tremendous difference inour communities! Each January, Southern Pine members will receive a statement on their bills detailing how much they have donated to Operation Round Up. Donations are tax deductible. While we know everyone wants to help, we understand that not everyone will want to participate in Operation Round Up. At any time, members may easily 18 TODAY | MARCH 2020

opt-out of the Operation Round Up program. Members may complete the opt-out form on the Southern Pine website, www.southernpine.coop, email us at optout@southernpine.coop or call us at (800)-231-5240. New Southern Pine members will be automatically enrolled in Operation Round Up. They may also opt-out at any time. Southern Pine wants to make sure members know that their donations are going to worthwhile causes. Therefore, Operation Round Up funds will be overseen by the Advisory Committee, comprised of members selected by Southern Pineâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Board of Directors. Your donations will be placed into a trust will be administered by the Pinebelt Foundation, a charitable support service that has been helping charities for over 21 years. Just think, for an average of 50 cents a month, you will be able to help your communities and neighbors in need. Imagine what we can do working together in the true spirit of cooperation! We hope that you will join us.

by Wes Lee What do you think when you hear 1 million? Perhaps most of us think about it in terms of money. How many of us have said, “I wish I had a million dollars”? It is definitely a large number conjuring up beautiful vacations, early retirement and the means to make life better for your family. Rarely do we stop to think of that large number in terms of time. The older, and hopefully wiser we get, sometimes money means less, and time means much, much more. What could you do with a million hours? Putting pencil to paper, it is easy to calculate that 1 million divided by 24 hours gives us a hefty 41,667 days, give or take a few minutes. If we take those days and divide them by 365, we would have approximately 114 years. That’s probably longer than any of our lifetimes, and most of us consider each year we have more andmore precious. I point this out to put into perspective a recent accomplishment at Southern Pine. From October 17, 2017, to January 7, 2020, our employees worked 1 million hours without a lost time accident. That means during this time, none of the 239 employees had an accident at work that kept them from working. This is a rare achievement in our industry. A culture of safety is what ensures that a lineman returns home at night in the same condition as he left. The lineman’s job has long been considered one of most dangerous jobs in the world. Between 1890 and 1930, the job carried a fatality rate of onein two. Today, electrical line worker jobs are still considered number nine of the most dangerous in the world.

The humbling fact that our linemen have left for work over these many months and returned home safely is a testament to their determination and commitment to safety. Gerald Gordon, Vice-President of Safety and Loss Control for the Electric Cooperatives of Mississippi, said that “safety has always been an element of the Southern Pine culture but to reach a milestone of this magnitude takes a rigorous dedication from employees and unwavering support from management.” Mr. Gordon is right. This achievement was due to the determination of each employee in every department. Zero by Choice is a phrase we used early on because we recognized that safety is a conscious choice to do things the right way, no exceptions. From the Board of Directors who demands that the safety report be presented first on every agenda, to our CEO, Jason Siegfried, for his unifying voice and unwavering support, we acknowledge that we owe a debt of gratitude to our employees who made the choice to keep themselves and their co-workers safe. In our business, our lives depend on each other and this exemplifies bringing the power safely so we can protect our family and members. Humbled and grateful, we pray for the continued safety of our employees, our sister cooperatives and the thousands of other men and women that risk their lives so that we may be safe and secure in our homes. It’s not a job for the faint of heart. It is a job of choice. Zero by Choice.

MEMBER SPOTLIGHT

Southern Pine member Mrs. Sandra Holt recently shared that while no one enjoys a power outage, she makes the best of the time by lighting an oil lamp and spending quality time with her husband. Unplugged, and away from distractions, they focus on each other and the things that are truly important. Leslie Eason, serviceman for portions of Covington, Simpson and Smith counties, delivered two baskets full of goodies for the Holt family to enjoy. MARCH 2020 | TODAY 19

P.O. Box 5 • 18671 Highway 61 • Lorman, MS 39096 601-437-3611 • 800-287-8564 • Fax: 601-437-8736 • Email: info@swepa.coop

Adams • Amite • Claiborne • Copiah • Franklin Hinds • Jefferson • Lincoln • Wilkinson Southwest Electric is an equal opportunity provider and employer.

southwestelectric.coop

Southwest Electric

SWElectricCoop

sw_electric_coop

Projects help increase reliability of service for Members Southwest Electric is committed to providing our Members with reliable electric service. Our employees work hard every day to accomplish this mission. On occasion, for large projects, we contract with other companies to assist us with trimming trees and inspecting utility poles. One of our big projects this year is right-of-way clearing by Delta Tree Services in Copiah and Lincoln counties. “Maintaining a 20-foot area on both sides of our poles clear of trees and brush is crucial for reliable service. This area is called the right-of-way,” explained Jeff Mac Segrest, Right-of-Way Supervisor. Southwest has a bucket truck that reaches 60-feet to trim trees. Many of the trees in our service area can be taller than that and contractors have special equipment that can reach. The area shaded in green below will be trimmed by Delta Tree Services and Southwest crews over the next several

RIGHT-OF-WAY

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months. This right-of-way project will clear trees and brush along 550 miles of power lines. Another big project this year will be inspection of poles in Wilkinson County. Osmose Utilities Services will inspect over 9,000 poles in the blue area on the map below. If you live in this area, you may see Osmose personnel digging around and treating our poles. Utility poles are out in the elements and need to be replaced over time. In the event a pole does not pass inspection, Southwest crews will replace that pole. “Improving the system helps keep outage times and costs 40 ft. down,” said Kevin Cotten, Manager of Operations. “With over 82,000 poles on 4,200 miles of line, contractors are vital partners in serving our Members.” If you have any questions about these projects, please contact us at 800-287-8564.

POLE INSPECTION

Plant the right tree in the right place When planted in the right spot, trees beautify our neighborhoods and can even lower energy bills. But the wrong tree in the wrong place can be a hazard...especially to power lines. SMALL/MEDIUM TREES 30-35 feet from lines • Bradford Pear • Dogwood • Flowering Dogwood • Ornamental Crabapple • Plum • Service Berry

• Cedar • Fig • Holly • Persimmon • Redbud • Sourwood

Right-of-Way

Avoid planting anything within 20 feet of the power lines

ft.

30 ft.

20 ft.

DAYLIGHT SAVINGS

LARGE TREES 40-45 feet from lines • Ash • Cotton Wood • Elm • Magnolia • Poplar • Spruce • Walnut • White Oak • Cherry • Cypress • Hickory • Pine • Red Oak • Sycamore • Willow

20 ft.

40 ft.

Just like putting gas in your car.

PAY AS YOU USE! $$ $

Spring Forward March 8 @ 2:00 a.m.

Requirements: ■ email address ■ internet access or smart phone ■ enroll account on Smart Hub ■ choose notification method on Smart Hub Text • Email • Phone ■ maintain $20 balance on account

Questions? Call 800-287-8564

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FOR AFTER-HOURS OUTAGES, CALL

866-897-7250 HOLLANDALE

BELZONI

(662) 827-2262

(662) 247-1909

GREENVILLE

ROLLING FORK

(662) 334-9543

(662) 873-4233

SERVING MORE THAN 12,600 ELECTRIC METERS IN FIVE DELTA COUNTIES

LANDSCAPING

Deciduous trees on the south and west sides of your home can deflect Photo Source: Alan Davey hot summer sun.

Pat Keegan and Brad Thiessen of Collaborative Efficiency Visit www.collaborativeefficiency. com/energytips for more energy efficient tips.

Contact Information: 2255 Gordon Avenue • Yazoo City, MS 39194 Mail: P.O. Box 8 • Yazoo City, MS 39194

TO REPORT OUTAGES:

662-746-4251 Visit us online at www.yazoovalley.com Follow us on Facebook and Twitter

Pay by Phone: 1-866-484-4277

LANDSCAPING

Deciduous trees on the south and west sides of your home can deflect Photo Source: Alan Davey hot summer sun.

Pat Keegan and Brad Thiessen of Collaborative Efficiency Visit www.collaborativeefficiency. com/energytips for more energy efficient tips.

by Dennis McFee At Yazoo Valley Electric Power Association, we are constantly striving to improve our operational efficiency so we can provide the most reliable electric service possible for you, our members. We rely on data for nearly every aspect of our operations, which is why we need your help. By making sure we have your most accurate and complete contact information, we can continue to provide the high level of service that you expect and deserve. Accurate information enables us to improve customer service and enhance communications for reporting and repairing outages. It also allows co-op members to receive information about other important programs, events and activities. Up-to-date contact information can potentially speed up the power restoration process during an outage. Accurate information helps us predict the location and possible cause of an outage, making it easier for our crews to correct the problem. While we always do our best to maintain service, we occasionally plan outages to update, repair or replace equipment. In these instances, we can provide advance notification to affected members through automated phone

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messages, text messages or email, if we have your updated contact information and communication preferences. Keeping the co-op updated with your information also helps us when there’s a question about energy use or billing. Emails and text messages are also used to notify enrolled members of any changes in co-op event details. In addition, discrepancies on your account can be taken care of promptly if Yazoo Valley Electric Power Association has accurate account information. Many of you have been members of the co-op for years, and it’s likely that your account information hasn’t been updated for some time. We recognize that many members now use a cell phone as their primary phone service, and we might not have that number in our system. I want to emphasize that in providing your contact information to the co-op, we will never share this information with any third parties. It is only used by Yazoo Valley Electric Power Association to send important information to you. Please take a moment to confirm or update your contact information by visiting yazoovalley.com or calling us at 662-746-4251. By doing so, you will be helping us improve service and efficiency so we can better serve you and all members of the co-op.

Day & Night

We are working for YOU! MARCH 2020 | TODAY 17