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Doug Bechtel
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During my Coast Guard years, I spent four years stationed in Washington, DC. Part of the time, I traveled around the country helping people with technical problems. I would always introduce myself by saying, "I am from Washington, D.C. and I am here to help you". That always got a good chuckle and broke the ice. Now, I want to say, "I am from OPALCO, and I am here to help you". You have heard me talk over the past several years about meeting your needs. I think we have really made a lot of progress in providing a cooperative that is responsive to you, our members and owners.
You know that we have set up places where you can drop off you OPALCO and PTI payments on several islands. On Orcas, you can drop off your payments at OPALCO , Rainbow Services or Islanders Bank. On San Juan Island, you can drop your payments off at our office or Islanders Bank. On Lopez, it is the Lopez Island Pharmacy, and on Shaw, it is the Little Portion Store. Let me encourage you to give us your telephone payments - PTI pays us 75 cents for every payment we process on their behalf.
We have recently made several other changes as well. In response to a large number of requests, we are beginning credit card services. Within the next week or so, you will be able to pay your OPALCO bill with VISA or Master Card. We can also accept your credit card payment by telephone.
For those of you who have been asking for automatic payment processing, customers of Islanders Bank can automatically have their OPALCO bill paid. To sign up for this, there is a short form you need to fill out which is available at either Islanders Bank or OPALCO. Key Bank offers its customers KeyPay, a method of paying your bills, including your OPALCO bill, by telephone. With KeyPay, you can specify how much to pay and when payment should be made. For more information on the KeyPay option, contact your local Key Bank.
And, of course, if all else fails, you can still mail us your payment.
In addition, for the next couple of months, our offices on Orcas and San Juan will be open from 7 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. We hope that these extra hours will help you during the busy summer months. We are committed to these hours for the months of July and August. After that, we will make a decision on our hours based on your needs.
Altogether, this is a lot of change for a company that used to expect you to change to meet our needs. OPALCO is changing to meet your needs. I hope enough OPALCO members will take advantage of these services to make them worthwhile. And, don't laugh when I say, "I am from OPALCO and I am here to help you".
Doug Bechtel
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