Episode Transcript
[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign.
[00:00:07] Speaker B: Welcome to the Buzz, a podcast by Boone Electra Cooperative. The Buzz is a monthly message to our community celebrating what it means to be a member owner of your local electric cooperative, Boone Electric Cooperative, your co op, our community.
[00:00:27] Speaker C: Welcome back to the Buzz. I'm Zach Smith, communications specialist at Boone Electric Cooperative. And as of today, September 1st, we are only nine days away from Boone Electric Cooperative's annual meeting being held on Thursday, September 10, 2026 here at Boone Electric Cooperative. That's 1413 Rangeline street in Columbia. And joining us today is someone who one year ago was on the ballot for reelection during the 2025 annual meeting. That is Boone Electric Cooperative Board President Kim Ponder. Kim, welcome back to the program.
[00:00:59] Speaker A: Thanks for having me.
[00:01:01] Speaker C: Annual meeting is the biggest day of the year at any co op and it's no different at Boone Electric. It always feels a little exciting, doesn't it?
[00:01:08] Speaker A: It absolutely does. I think it's one of the few times during the year that we actually get to see the cooperative principle of member ownership come to life. You know, I think what we see show up is not just our customers to an event. These are actually our members coming together to participate in the cooperative. And for me personally, it brings back a lot of great memories that I've had over the years. Been attending since I was was young.
And over the years, I think it's been fun to see the great energy that comes from the annual meeting. We get to see our neighbors, our friends, families, employees and directors really all come together for, for some fun and the good of the organization.
[00:01:45] Speaker C: It seems like everybody is having a good time. They're just, I don't know another way to describe it. There's a little bit of excitement in the air even from people who are first time there. They.
[00:01:54] Speaker A: Yeah, you know, you don't know what to anticipate until you attend. And then once you do, you're like, oh, this is fantastic. And I'm so thankful to be a part of it.
[00:02:03] Speaker C: Before we get into talking about this year's meeting and what the members can expect here in a few days on September 10th, I'd like to go back to your initial experience or experiences with annual meeting. Can you take me back to say, the first time you ran for the board, what was that experience like?
[00:02:21] Speaker A: Oh, that's a great question. I think my first impression is I was, it was how unique the event was.
And I say that because it's truly a one of a kind event.
You come in to the meeting with the perspective of someone who wants to serve and I thought it was eye opening to see how members participated, but probably the pride that they had in being a part of the cooperative, I thought that was just really resonated with me. The thing that stood out the most was recognizing that everyone that was there also had a voice. I've attended other business type meetings and it's not that kind of feel or that kind of takeaway. When I was at the meetings and even my first impressions of it, truly from a business perspective and wanting to be a part of the board, it was interesting to see people asking questions. I watched them casting votes, I watched them actually learning about the cooperative. And I don't think that's something you see in the everyday business model. So truly unique. But just between the uniqueness of the event and the pride that people have, I thought those were some pretty, pretty good things that I would have taken away or have taken away over the years.
[00:03:27] Speaker C: Yeah. There's also the scale of it, I think, and I know that it's looked different for the past few years with the drive thru format, but even going back to prior to that when there was more of an emphasis on the in person meeting, you know, day to day, throughout the year, even folks who know that they're a member of an electric cooperative and know what that means, I would, I would assume, and maybe I'm assuming wrongly, but it probably doesn't stand out in your mind all the time that you're part of something as big as an electric cooperative is, certainly as big as Boone electric Cooperative is. And then you come to annual meeting and you see all those people in the in person format or all those cars coming through during the drive thru format. And it really kind of emphasizes the idea that you're part of this something
[00:04:17] Speaker A: so much bigger than yourself.
[00:04:18] Speaker C: Yeah, exactly.
[00:04:19] Speaker A: And again, you don't. It's hard to imagine it in your mind. You hear about it, you've seen pictures of it. But to put yourself in the middle of it, to be at the core of it, is truly pretty amazing.
[00:04:31] Speaker C: Well, this is probably the most important question I'll ask you today. When you came to that meeting when you were first running for the board, did you bring your rural Missouri when you registered to vote?
[00:04:43] Speaker A: Yes. You know, I think anybody that's attended an annual meeting long enough, you learn pretty quickly that you do not leave home without it. It is, when the issue comes, we, we set it aside, it's ready to go out the door when it's annual meeting day. So yes, absolutely, we brought that along.
[00:04:58] Speaker C: If I can give One piece of advice to people listening to this before they come, it's actually two pieces of advice. On September 10th, it's, number one, bring that copy of rural Missouri because it really speeds things up in terms of getting you registered, getting that $20 bill credit applied to your account.
But also number two is check the name that's on the mailing label of that rural Missouri, because that will tell you who is eligible to vote. And I know we always have a few people who are a little confused about that when they show up because we have both sole memberships and joint memberships. We, we've talked about that a lot this year.
But if there's one name on there, that's who the account's registered to. And if there are two names, both of those names should be on the account, either one of them, but only one of them can vote.
That's my soapbox for that.
[00:05:45] Speaker A: I think it's great advice. I think it's great advice. It's a good soapbox to be on. I work in a profession where account ownership is very important.
I would encourage members not to wait until annual meeting to understand who's listed as the member owner of their account. I think that's something that we check at any time.
It helps avoid confusion on that day. But with that, I want to give a shout out to the Boone Electric employees because they do an outstanding job of helping members through this whole process. The day to day, the day of the event, you guys are constantly answering questions and helping with that registration. We want to make sure it's a positive experience, but not one that it's easily understandable. It's not hard, but it's also, it can be confusing. So I think your advice is great, but I would encourage people to look at that now. You can look at that at any given time and make yourself more aware of what your membership looks like.
[00:06:38] Speaker C: Not to mention a lot of folks who I do see bring it with them, will use it to kind of mark or write down the things that they want to vote for.
And so it's helpful to have that if you've already kind of used it as a guide more or less on how to get through the ballot.
[00:06:53] Speaker A: And it's interesting as you attend and you see that, you see people with their rural Missouri magazines, right. They don't just bring the ballot piece of it or the tear off piece with their label. They bring it because it's a reference point. So it's a great tool as well, from a communication standpoint.
[00:07:08] Speaker C: Yeah. And there's a lot in there. One of the things that's in there, if you're not able to come on September 10, you can also sign that proxy card that's on the reverse side of your address on your mailing label on that copy of Rural Missouri and you will still receive that bill credit to your account. It's a lot of little details like that like you mentioned, but they are important to know before you come.
[00:07:28] Speaker A: You're right. Yeah, absolutely.
[00:07:29] Speaker C: A lot of what's been established over the past few years as far as annual meeting goes has stayed the same when it comes to the the drive thru portion or the format of this year's meeting. The members are going to come in, they're going to drive through our large vehicle truck bay, register, vote on the iPad, and then they're on their way out the door. And we're doing that from 7am to 4pm on September 10. But then the board wanted to do something a little bit different this year. Can you tell us a little bit about what that is and what the discussion was surrounding the in person business meeting which is making its return to the annual meeting for the first time in I think six years?
[00:08:09] Speaker A: I think that's right. So as you know Zach, we have a wide range of members that we continually communicate with and the board felt it was important to create yet another opportunity for members to engage with us.
So while the drive thru format was always and is successful and convenient, there's also great value in gathering together.
I think when people gather together it's easier to understand. When we're hearing our business reports, we're able to ask questions. We get to actually have face to face conversations with one another.
And we wanted as a board to really balance out the convenience but also the connections. That's an art that is lost on many of us. And I think to me this year gives members the opportunity to choose a format that works best for them but allows them to participate. And that's so important as a member.
[00:08:55] Speaker C: You mentioned the lost art aspect of being able to have a in person conversation and it does kind of go back to the thing I always think of when I think of some of the many differences between an electric cooperative and other utilities or other businesses. You know, you call here, you still get a person who answers the phone during business hours.
It's an odd thing to think that we're one of the last places that you can do that. But yeah, that is exactly as you mentioned, this ability to have a choice what works better for you if you're on the go and you've only got a few minutes, then the drive thru meeting is probably, if that timeframe works for you, that's probably the way to go. But if you want to come and hear the reports and be able to ask questions, then the in person business meeting is probably the one you want to attend, right?
[00:09:42] Speaker A: You know, I think the things that I've learned over the years of being on the board of directors here is that the best conversations sometimes happen before or after the meeting.
It's interesting to watch members share their feedback, ask questions about what's important to them and those conversations help give direction. Yes, those conversations, that feedback help each of us as directors bring things to the table, have different conversations and that just improves us overall for all of us.
[00:10:09] Speaker C: It's not as delicious as an annual meeting as it has been in the past. It's not the tent with fried chicken or the ham and cheese sandwiches as in many years past, but it is an in person opportunity to vote. If you don't have the time to do the drive through voting during the day like you've mentioned, speak to the directors, hear the reports which are also printed in our annual report that we'll have at annual meeting. And it also might be worth noting that you can't double dip the registration bill credit if you come to both the drive thru and the in person meeting. If you decide to do that once you're registered in the drive thru and vote, that's your registration and your vote. We will have voting prior to the beginning of the in person meeting. But if you've already voted, then you won't be able to cast an additional ballot.
[00:10:57] Speaker A: Correct.
[00:10:57] Speaker C: This year, as with every year, members are voting for their representatives on the board of directors and they can vote for one candidate in each district, 1, 2, 3, not just the district that they live in. And then approving last year's annual meeting minutes, which we do every year. And then this year we have four proposed bylaw amendments that are up for approval. And if you don't mind, can you discuss with us a little bit just in lay terms what we're amending when we go through the proposed bylaw amendments that end up on the ballot.
[00:11:29] Speaker A: Yeah, certainly. So this year we do have four amendments that are focused on making sure that Boone Electric remains strong and well governed for years to come. I think that's how we are being as a board of directors, being thoughtful for for years to come, not just what's been behind us. So at the end of the day, I think These amendments are intended to protect and strengthen the cooperative on behalf of the membership at a high level. Those four proposed amendments address quorum requirements, director qualifications to serve on the Board of Directors, clarification of the nominations process and timelines, and finally, the remote participation standards that we set for directors. I think for members, that means that there's clearer governance and stronger accountability. The amendments help ensure that directors remain focused on serving our cooperative and helping to avoid potential conflicts of interest. I think it also strengthens expectations around director conduct, the election process, and participation in our board meetings. You know, kind of thinking about how those were put together. It takes time for them to come to be in front of the membership, and they're well thought out. And I appreciate them the most because I think they raised the bar for current and future directors elected to support the members. Zach? You know, I think looking at all four of them together, the common theme is really stewardship. To me, we are trying to make sure that the cooperative that our members own today is even around and even better for the generations of our members tomorrow. You know, we're looking at 90 years of history here, and that is important for us to support that and continue that as directors.
[00:13:02] Speaker C: This is always the perfect time to ask the question that always comes up when we have a director on the show, but why should people care about being a member of an electric cooperative? And I think you answered it in one word, stewardship.
That this is the time of year when your vote, you have the say in your business, and you're choosing who's going to represent your voice in this business on a regular basis throughout the year. And while this annual meeting and these changes to the bylaws, electing directors, that only happens once a year, like you mentioned, a lot of the work that goes into trying to make sure that we're not just reacting to things that have happened, but we are preparing for a future and maintaining reliability and affordability and all those things. That takes a lot of continued conversation, not just the year leading up to annual meeting, but sometimes years leading up to annual meeting.
[00:13:56] Speaker A: Absolutely. These conversations are continuous. And the feedback that we get from all these fantastic people that we take care of every day helps to shape that and helps to foster a really positive path forward.
[00:14:10] Speaker C: What would you tell members who either haven't been to annual meeting before or in a while or might be considering not coming this year?
[00:14:20] Speaker A: I think you got to try it on one time. Yeah, I think you got to. You got to check it out. You got to see what it's all about I think most people think of us, we keep their lights on and I want them to know that they're more than that.
They're a part of something bigger than just the light switch and the generation of the power. I think it's pretty incredible that 90 years later we are still an organization that's guided by the same values we can. We began with this mission to bring electricity to rural areas and that has really grown into this commitment for generations of members going forward. I think I would just say give it a try. I think it's a positive experience. It's fun and it shows you the value of membership.
[00:14:59] Speaker C: Yes, it is certainly rarefied air that you're breathing by being able to be a member of a cooperative and have some say in things.
[00:15:08] Speaker A: I think I, I would tell you, and I'd probably add to that is just the appreciation that you have about what a cooperative is versus other models, other utility models. It is a breath of fresh air and I do have a great appreciation
[00:15:22] Speaker C: for that annual meeting. It's a unique, exciting event and it's going to look a little different this year than it has in quite some time. But I know the employees, the directors, the co op members are still looking forward to it.
Kim, thanks for coming in today to discuss the annual meetings and give us some insights into the decisions and the changes this year. Really appreciate that.
[00:15:42] Speaker A: Well, you're welcome. It's been a pleasure to be here. I mean, I would say Annual Meeting has always been one of my favorite cooperative traditions and it shows what makes us so special.
[00:15:51] Speaker C: And thank you for joining us. Be sure to come back next month. Come to Annual Meeting first, but please join us again for next month's program and until then, we'll see you somewhere down the line.
[00:16:02] Speaker B: Thank you for tuning in to the Buzz, a podcast by Boone Electric Cooperative. To subscribe or for more information, you can find us on Facebook, Instagram X and LinkedIn. And of course, you can always visit us 247 at Boonelectric Co op Boone Electric Cooperative, your co op. Our.
