Cooperative’s annual gathering back at Anderson Music Hall
By Lorrie Ross
Staff Writer
After a four year hiatus, Blue Ridge Mountain Electric Membership Corporation returned to the Anderson Music Hall at the Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds for its 83rd annual meeting on Saturday, Sept. 24.
Prior to the meeting, attending members enjoyed coffee and Krispy Kreme doughnuts, while being entertained by singer Lindsey Beth Harper.
The meeting officially began with a presentation of colors by the North Georgia Honor Guard, followed by an invocation from BRMEMC Board of Directors president, Roy Perren.
A BRMEMC video presentation showing farmers at work began. “Imagine what it was like before there was electric power,” it said. “That all changed in 1937 when these folks came together to shine a light on the need for our towns and communities to finally get electricity and make the delivery of that electricity affordable. In 1938, Blue Ridge Mountain EMC was founded on the principle of providing this much-needed service to power rural communities. The cooperation among neighbors and formation of democratically controlled not-for-profit business. Is there any finer representation of democracy than neighbors helping neighbors? When we turned the lights on, something bigger happened. We empowered our rural mountain community and capitalized on the strength of will found in the people of this region — Clay and Cherokee counties in North Carolina and Fannin, Towns and Union Counties in north Georgia. From our humble beginnings to today, Blue Ridge Mountain EMC answers the call — united in community, cooperation, responsibility and equity. We continue to bring services that will improve and enhance the quality of life of our members.”
The video continued by saying time and members’ resources are being invested to meet the needs of “a new generation of coop members.” Services needed today are things like solar energy, broadband internet and electric vehicle assistance.
General Manager Allan Glidewell compared EMC with two Ford Mustangs on display in front of the stage, a vintage model and a new electric one. The 1963 Mustang came out to offer Americans an affordable sports car. The newer one is providing Americans with a contemporary, electric version of the sports car.
Glidewell shared some of the same statistics the video had given. BRMEMC has 50,000 members and 13,000 broadband customers in a territory the size of Rhode Island. New electric assets include 51.64 miles of electric distribution lines for a total of 6,300 miles and 1,041 new meters for a total of 58,000 total meters. There are also 1,800 miles of fiber line.
Then Tommy Townsend and his band provided live music while the final ballots were tallied. Jack Lance, EMC Board of Directors Secretary, declared an official quorum of the voting members. Cory Payne for Clay County, Gene Mason for Union County and Ray Cook for Cherokee County, were reelected as unchallenged incumbents.
The mood of the meeting was calm and relaxed, unlike many annual meetings several years ago. Attendees applauded Glidewell’s speech, as well as the video produced by EMC. As names were called for an array of door prizes, many members told Glidewell to put their prizes back for someone else to win.
The video ended in a way which seemed to reflect attendees’ sentiments. “Just like those farmers and businessmen back in the 1930’s, we will once again band together with our members to offer the critical solutions that best fit the needs of our membership,” the video said. “At BRMEMC, we are members serving members.”