By the Community, for The Community
When you think of October, pumpkins, Halloween, and beautiful fall foliage naturally come to mind. But October is notable for another reason—it’s National Co-op Month! This is the time of year when cooperatives across the country, including Kootenai Electric Cooperative (KEC), celebrate who we are and, more importantly, the members we serve.
Cooperatives are different than other types of businesses. When the market declines to offer a product or service, or does so at a very high price, cooperatives intervene to fill the need.
Similar to how KEC was built by members who came together to bring electricity to our community, cooperatives are conveners for the common good. KEC exists to provide safe, reliable, and affordable energy to you, our members. Equally important is our mission to enrich the lives of the members we serve.
As a cooperative, we are well-suited to meet the needs of the community because we are locally governed. KEC’s leadership team and employees live right here in the community. Our board of directors, which helps set long-term priorities for the cooperative, lives locally on KEC lines. These board members have been elected to the position by neighbors like you.
We know our members (that’s you!) have a valuable perspective. That’s why we continually seek your input. Whether through community events, our social media channels, or the annual meeting, we want to hear from you.
Our close connection to the community ensures we get a first-hand perspective on local priorities, thereby enabling us to make more informed decisions on long-term investments, such as our community solar project, equipment and technology upgrades, and more.
Another feature that sets KEC apart from traditional utility is 1 of our core principles, “Concern for Community.” We partner with local organizations like the Community Action Partnership to provide energy assistance to those in need and offer grants and scholarships through Operation Round Up®.
Ultimately, the larger community benefits from these programs because of you and your neighbors. You empower the cooperative through your membership and through your participation in and support of these programs.
We hope you will think of KEC as more than your energy provider; instead, it is a local business that supports this community.
We will continue to learn from our members about their priorities so that we can better serve you—because your electric cooperative was built by the community, for the community.