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Doug Bechtel
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Believe it or not, in a couple of weeks, I will be writing OPALCOGRAM No. 200. Since I write these every other week, that makes it about 400 weeks, or almost eight years, that these have been going on. I continue to get a lot of good feedback as well as ideas for these OPALCOGRAMS from many sources, but by and large, I select OPALCOGRAM material by issues that I feel are important to you, our members. For the most part, I try to make sure that the subject material is of interest to a broad cross section of our members. In general, the issues do not relate to just one island.
I want to digress from my normal discussion of electric issues and talk a little bit about something that I have been personally involved in for the past several weeks. By the time you read this, many of you will know that I have a part in the Orcas Center production of Oklahoma! I have always been reticent about being on stage (although you know I love to get in front of a group and talk), but I went ahead and gave it a try. Being part of a major production is a lot of hard work (as I expected), but it is far more challenging and a lot more fun than I thought it would be. I have gained a lot of appreciation for all those who have been entertaining us for years, both in front of and behind the curtains.
San Juan and Orcas Islands have very active performing arts centers, and it looks like Lopez will soon have a performing arts center of its own. These organizations are supported to a large extent by local contributions and feature local performers as well as off island groups to provide a portion of the cultural diversity that makes San Juan County such an interesting place to live.
These performing arts centers are able to provide quality productions because of the commitments of many people in the many different areas it takes to provide the entertainment and facilities we want. OPALCO also has a commitment to San Juan County - a commitment which is unchanged even as more and more investor owned utilities like Puget Sound Energy are closing customer service offices and relocating line crews to save a few dollars. Local ownership insures that OPALCO will be here to serve you and put your needs first. I recently heard a slogan that said while investor owned utilities worry about how they look on Wall Street, locally owned utilities like OPALCO worry about how they look on your street.
Whether you are an OPALCO employee or not, we all need to be involved in San Juan County - each in our own way - to keep this the special place that it is. And don't forget to see Oklahoma! at the Orcas Center as well as the upcoming productions of the San Juan Community Theater and, in a couple of years, the Lopez Community and Arts Center.
Doug Bechtel
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