Brighton, Colo. — United Power celebrated a special cooperative milestone with members at its Annual Meeting & Director Election on April 17, 2019. The Brighton-headquartered electric utility joined a short list of rural electric cooperatives that have been providing safe and reliable power for 80 years. United Power highlighted its connection with the communities it serves with a special member video featuring long-term members throughout the territory.
More than 381 registered members attended the Annual Meeting and voted in the director election. South District incumbent, Keith E. Alquist II, retained his seat, receiving 2940 votes. Bradley J. Case also received 2745 votes in the South District election. Elizabeth Martin, East District, and Ursula J. Morgan, West District, retained their seats with 5362 and 5342 votes, respectively.
Over the course of the past year, United Power built on and completed some exciting, previously announced projects. The cooperative powered the state’s largest battery storage project in December, which is expected to save nearly $1 million each year. As the cooperative’s membership continues to grow, and with the acquisition of Frederick Power & Light, United Power also began to renovate and man its new building out west, the Carbon Valley Service Center.
“The new facility gives us the ability to respond to outages in the western part of our service territory more quickly,” said John Parker, United Power Chief Executive Officer. “These projects are aimed at driving United Power toward the future and continuing to think of our members first.”
In honor of Lineman Appreciation Day on April 18th, United Power presented a special video covering lineman Kelly Snow, who went to Guatemala with a team of fellow linemen from Oklahoma and Colorado. Over a three-week period, linemen brought power to two remote jungle villages that had never had electricity. Later this year, Snow will return to Guatemala with a new team of linemen to bring power to two new villages.
“Cooperation among cooperatives is one of our core principles,” Snow said. “Cooperatives were established to bring electricity to rural communities, and those who others didn’t want to serve. Being able to represent United Power in Guatemala is a huge honor, and I’m excited to be going back.”
United Power has been and will continue to be a partner in the communities it has served for the past 80 years. As the cooperative moves forward, it continues to have an eye on the future and look for the best way to bring safe and reliable power to its members.