Orcas Power & Light Cooperative (OPALCO) is a member\u2010owned cooperative and on May 16th, the\u00a0member\u2010owners will exercise their right to elect their Board of Directors. Who is a member of OPALCO?<\/p>\n
Anyone who receives an OPALCO power bill in their name is a member. In this year\u2019s election, there are six\u00a0candidates running including two incumbents: Roger Crosby and Chris Thomerson; three nominated by\u00a0committee: Winnie Adams, Joan Pedrick and Jeff Struthers; and one nominated by petition: Moriah\u00a0Armstrong. [Please see attached for complete candidate bios.]<\/p>\n
OPALCO\u2019s governing board consists of seven directors who are elected for three\u2010year terms, with the\u00a0elections staggered by district. Candidates are typically nominated by a committee appointed by the Board,\u00a0but any member may seek nomination by petition with the signatures of at least fifteen voting members of\u00a0their district. Each director is elected by a vote of OPALCO members and all members may vote in every\u00a0election, regardless of their home district. Each member household gets one ballot regardless of how many\u00a0meters or accounts they may have.<\/p>\n
Present directors are David Hylton and George Mulligan\u2014District 1 (San Juan, Brown, Henry, Pearl and\u00a0Spieden Islands); Roger Crosby and Chris Thomerson\u2014District 2 (Orcas, Armitage, Big Double, Blakely,\u00a0Fawn, Little Double, and Obstruction Islands); Jim Lett and Bob Myhr\u2014District 3 (Lopez, Decatur, Center\u00a0and Charles Islands); John Bogert\u2014District 4 (Shaw, Bell, Canoe and Crane Islands). District 2 directors are\u00a0up for election this year.<\/p>\n
Absentee ballots are enclosed with OPALCO\u2019s annual report, which will be arriving in mailboxes the first\u00a0week of May. Absentee ballots must be received at the Eastsound OPALCO office no later than Friday, May\u00a015, 2009 at noon. Ballots can also be cast at the annual meeting on the ferry, Saturday, May 16th\u00a0where the election results will be announced. A quorum of at least 100 members is required at the annual meeting for\u00a0the election to be held. OPALCO\u2019s 72nd\u00a0Annual Meeting will be held on the ferry on Saturday, May 16th.\u00a0\u00a0Members from San Juan\u00a0Island will board the ferry at 8:25 am (or ride the Mystic Sea by reservation only); Orcas Island at 10:20 am;\u00a0Shaw Island at 10:35 am; and Lopez Island at 11:00 am. For the full travel schedule, please go to\u00a0www.opalco.com. Members and their families who attend the annual meeting will be treated to a healthy\u00a0and delicious sack lunch, free gifts and the chance to win one of more than fifty fabulous door prizes such as\u00a0power and garden tools, Mariner tickets, generous gift certificates, kitchen tools and appliances, camping\u00a0and sporting equipment, OPALCO bill credits, art and merchandise from local businesses. Every member\u00a0who attends will receive a $5 credit on their next bill. Get on the ferry and ride!<\/p>\n
OPALCO is a member\u2010owned cooperative electrical utility serving more than 14,000 accounts on 20 islands\u00a0in San Juan County.\u00a0\u00a0OPALCO provides electricity that is 97% greenhouse\u2010gas free and is predominately\u00a0generated by hydro\u2010electric plants. OPALCO was founded in 1937 to bring electricity to rural islanders and\u00a0is one of 900 electric co\u2010ops in the United States today.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"