CEO Message — August 2020

Safety with our numbers

Les MorelandAt Wiregrass Electric Cooperative (WEC), we have always focused on operating in a safe manner. Around here, we say: “Our No. 1 priority is serving our members. We accomplish that with our No. 1 goal of operating safely.”

The motto makes sense on many levels.

First, we care about our employees. We know them well, we have watched their children grow, and we have served our communities together through WEC, churches, or civic groups. We desire to see them go home to their families each day.

Second, our motto ensures we operate efficiently. Lost time from accidents or illnesses often results in overtime for someone else. Or, it results in something left undone — a task that might help us serve our members better. If we are to be effective stewards of the resources our members entrust to us, we must operate as safely as we can.

Safety is such a focus for us that we are routinely asked to present our safety campaigns at National Rural Electric Cooperative Association conferences. We extend our safety focus to our members, too, as we offer a variety of safety tips through the Alabama Living magazine, the My Hometown Power bill inserts, our website, and occasionally on social media.

It is with your safety in mind that our board of trustees voted in June to change the format of this year’s annual meeting. While we love seeing all of our members and celebrating our wonderful organization together, the coronavirus pandemic has changed our typical approach this year.

As of the June board meeting, it appeared the nation was mired in a second wave of the virus. With a vaccine unlikely to be widely available by October, our board members felt it necessary to pare down our normal celebrations.

We will still conduct our annual meeting this year on October 16. Although members can register and vote the day of the meeting, we are strongly encouraging everyone to utilize the mail-in registration and voting option.

We will be live-streaming the business session and will place a recording of this meeting on all our social media outlets. More information on this, and the voting process, will be available closer to the meeting date.

To comply with social distancing safety measures, members will be encouraged not to stay for the meeting sessions if the individual member’s choice is to register and vote in person.

We appreciate your understanding and cooperation. We really do serve the best members in the world.

Les Moreland
CEO Wiregrass Electric Cooperative