Click on the photo above to see the recording of the 73rd Annual Meeting of Barry Electric Cooperative.
After many setbacks and challenges, the 73rd Annual Meeting was held on Thursday, August 20, 2020. After a vote of the members in 2019, the by-laws were amended to allow registration and voting to occur at the office five business days prior to the actual meeting, and we experienced great response to this change. By allowing our members to have a little flexibility, we saw a larger number of votes then we have seen in the past several years.
Due to the spike in COVID-19 cases in our community, our Board of Directors made the decision to hold a closed meeting that was videoed and made available online. Every registered member will receive a $10 credit on their September electric bill, and a lucky few will receive one of our thirty plus door prizes.
We sincerely want to thank our employees who helped pull off this successful event as well as our wonderful members who remained flexible and understanding as we modified a seventy-three-year tradition.
Election Results as follows:
District 1 : Lewis Royer - 212 votes, declared winner
District 2 : Dr. David Cupps - 218 votes, declared winner
District 3 : Kenyon Atkinson - 144 votes, declared winner / Aubrey Wolf Jr - 119 votes
Questions from the Floor:
Why is the lobby closed? The decision, to make our lobby available by appointment only, was made for additional safety and protection for our members and employees. We are an essential provider, and our lobby sees constant traffic under normal circumstances. Smaller gatherings and less traffic provides less risk of spreading the virus. The Management Team feels like we provide multiple remote payment options, however other business may be conducted in our lobby if not achievable online.
Why is it so difficult to remove a deceased person’s name from a billing address? As a cooperative member, each account owner earns Capital Credits for each year of membership. We take the protection and privacy of each account seriously and have certain procedures we follow to achieve this level of care. Names are not removed from accounts (even in the case of death), but can be moved from the primary account holder position to a secondary holder position. If the account’s usage no longer belongs to all parties represented on the membership, then a new account must be established so that Capital Credits are no longer gained jointly.
What is the status of extra charges for people with diesel pickup trucks in winter? There are no extra charges for members with diesel pickup trucks at any point. A message from the manager article found in the Rural Missouri made mention of avoiding peak rates by charging your diesel engine in off-peak hours.
Barry Electric Cooperative Board of Directors
