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 A: Welcome back to the Buzz. I'm Zach Smith, communications specialist at Boone Electric Co.
As of today, Labor Day, we are only 10 days away from Boone Electric Cooperative's annual meeting being held on Thursday, September 11, 2025, here at Boone Electric Cooperative, 1413 Rangeline street in Columbia. And joining us today is someone who one year ago was on the ballot for the 2024 annual meeting, Boone Electric Cooperative director, Caroline Andriano. Caroline, welcome to the program.
[00:00:57] Speaker C: Thank you.
[00:00:58] Speaker A: Annual meeting is the the biggest day of the year at any co op or the biggest good day, I guess I should say. And it's no different here at Boone Electric Cooperative. So is there some sense of relief for you that you don't have to run again this year anyway?
[00:01:11] Speaker C: Absolutely. I think last year was probably the most challenging getting through the annual meeting. And it was a new experience for me and I called on my friends and family for it. So this year I enjoy supporting those that are running.
I think we have a great board. And I also like sitting in the behind the scenes this year.
[00:01:32] Speaker A: Before we talk about this year's meeting and what the members can expect on September 11th, I want to go back to September 12th of last year and hear about your experience with the annual meeting.
[00:01:43] Speaker C: I've been a member with my husband since 2008, and we have a small farm right outside of Roachport, and we've all always enjoyed Boone Electric's reliability. And we even, we even have interacted with Boone Electric as far as with our tree trimming and our power lines, every interaction's always been positive. When the Boone Electric director committee was looking for someone to run, it's kind of funny because they first thought of my husband and I respect that. He's extremely talented, but his plate's really full.
We like to call him Farmer Steve because of our blueberry farm. But then it quickly shifted to perhaps Caroline would be interested. And as the conversation continued, it definitely sparked my interest.
I love giving back to the community. I love being engaged in the business world. And it's a good combination of both of them.
I do have to laugh because how it technically came about was we are in our shop. And that's where most conversations happen in the neighborhood. It's in someone's shop. We're sitting around a table and, you know, just kind of what would that Mean, what does that look like? Can you tell me more about it? Great decisions were made that day, and then I went ahead and applied for it.
[00:03:02] Speaker A: Take me back to September 12th a little bit. Did you have butterflies that day? Were you nervous about it at all? Were you totally okay with whatever happened or.
[00:03:10] Speaker C: Absolutely. So. And took a little bit of both. A little bit of both. So if you go back to.
After making the decision to put myself out there, there is the interview process, which my background, my professional job is human resources. And so I'm involved in a lot of interviewing, but I have not interviewed. Been interviewed myself in a while.
So I do appreciate the structure that the committee gives to it. And they interviewed me, and I was fortunate enough to pass that interview and move on to be on the ballot.
And then I spent the next several months getting to know more about Boone Electric and getting to know more about the members and how the process worked. So that was a big learning curve. We participated in parades. We again, just went out there. I will tell you that the day of, I had a very big work event going on with my team. And so I only told one team member that, hey, I may get a very important phone call, and so I may step out.
And I had butterflies all day like you said. But in the end, when I did get the phone call to say the members had selected me, I felt really proud. And I would say I very quickly came into the office to meet the board members.
[00:04:25] Speaker A: So when you came in to vote on September 12, did you bring your rural Missouri with you?
[00:04:29] Speaker C: Oh, gosh, you pinned me on the spot.
I know. We cut it out and we had it on the refrigerator, which is where we put everything that's important. I'm not going to say I technically brought it with you or not with me or not, but. Yeah.
[00:04:42] Speaker A: Well, that's the only reason I ask is if I can give people who are listening one piece of advice before they come to the annual meeting. Actually, it's two. It's bring the rule Missouri, because it really speeds up the line in terms of getting you registered, getting that $20 bill credit applied to your account, and two, to check the name that's on your mailing address because that tells you who is eligible to vote. I know we always have a few people who are confused by that when they show up, because we have sole memberships and joint memberships. So if there's one name there, that's who the account's registered to. There are two names. Both of those names can vote because they're both on the account. And if you're not able to come on September 11, you can also sign that proxy card that's on the back of the mailing address that you cut out that will allow anyone who is over 18 that lives in the household and is designated by you on that card to vote in your steady and you will still receive the bill credit. A lot of details, but important things to know before you show up. Getting to this year's meeting. A lot of what has been established over the past few years has stayed the same when it comes to this drive thru format. The members drive in kind of through the campus, through the truck bay, they register, they vote by iPad, and then they're on their way out the door. But the biggest difference this year is probably due to the fact that because of our bylaws, this meeting falls on September 11th. I'd like it if you could just to tell me a little bit about the discussion that the board has had surrounding that and how that informed the way that the meeting's being held this year.
[00:06:10] Speaker C: Well, I can tell you that we did take all of that into consideration. Knowing it is September 11th and all the tragedy that happened on that day, we did not want to brush over it.
We wanted to allow members to participate in any events in remembrance of and we looked at when those events typically happen and that is in the morning based on when the actual flights occurred. So we made that a priority to allow people to participate in those events and have a little bit of a later start and then also extend it into the evening. Something else to take into consideration is the staff that work that event and we want to be respectful of their time and their workday as well. So we appreciate all that they put into it, which is more than just the day of. They have to get ready for it, do their other job as well as prepare for the annual meeting. And so we wanted to keep that in mind and kept it at a 6pm end time.
Now for those of you that may not know, it doesn't just end at 6pm and you hit a button and it tells you who the winner is. So there's a lot more that goes on behind the scenes with validating the process.
So it is extended quite a bit longer into the evening and we didn't want it to go too far because again, the next day is another full business workday.
[00:07:34] Speaker A: That whole discussion and figuring it out this year especially, I guess is a little more difficult because you want to recognize the day, what happened, what it means, and then what you can do, if anything, that's going to feel appropriate in terms of honoring the lives that were lost. And then on top of that, you have to consider this flow of traffic that's in and out of the facility, keeping people aware of moving vehicles, so we don't have any collisions or other accidents. And there's a lot of variables at play. And every one of them, of course, has their own weight. So thank you for telling us how that was considered this year.
This year, as with every year, members are voting for their representatives on the board of directors. They can vote for candidates in each district, 1, 2, and 3. And then approving last year's annual meeting minutes. And then we have two bylaw amendments that are up for approval this year. Could you tell me a little bit in lay terms what those are?
[00:08:27] Speaker C: Sure.
The first one is really clarifying on the language when someone is appointed to be a director versus through an election process.
And the second one gives some more clarity for methods of holding a director's meeting.
Both of those were small changes that came about because the bylaws are reviewed by the board of directors, and we looked to see that they're current, make sure that everything is still appropriate, and give it a good review. Which I think, again, speaks to Boone Electric and their review of policies, procedures, and all of that.
[00:09:06] Speaker A: I would agree. I mean, obviously, I'm not on the board, but, you know, from my brief experience with our bylaws and what gets proposed as far as an amendment to them, you know, sometimes we have a whole page or half a page of wordage verbiage that gets edited or updated. And in this case, I think that these two much smaller amendments really speaks to how much of a fine tooth comb you all look through those bylaws with when you're trying to make sure that everything is current and up to date and meeting the needs of the board, whenever there's clarity required for something.
[00:09:42] Speaker C: I would agree.
When we're in board meetings, we have the nine directors looking over all of the bylaws policies, and we also have the general manager and our appointed attorney. So we do look over these very closely, which, again, speaks to Boone Electric. Makes me feel really comfortable in the process.
[00:10:03] Speaker A: This feels like the perfect time to ask this question, because it always comes up when we have a director here on the show. But why should people care that they're a member of an electric cooperative? Why does that matter?
[00:10:13] Speaker C: You know, Zach, that's a question that I got asked frequently when I was campaigning last year.
And my response is, because you are a member, you have a say in it, you have a voice, and if you're ever in that situation, you should use it.
Get involved, understand the bylaws and the process, and make sure you feel comfortable with where everything is.
If you like to vote, which I do, I like to put a vote towards that. Go for it. If you just like to be informed of the process, this is your opportunity. So again, it's being a part of something, being a member, and taking it to the next level.
[00:10:54] Speaker A: We offer a lot of programs, services, information to our members, but I feel like the voting at the annual meeting is kind of the easiest point of entry.
If you don't take part in anything else, you at least can come every year and you have some say in who's representing you, who's your voice at the table, as I always put it.
[00:11:17] Speaker C: I agree. I think there are a lot of good programs that Boone Electric offers, but it does start with the annual meeting to look at the ballot, look at the individuals that are running to sit on the board, and then put your vote in. Absolutely.
[00:11:32] Speaker A: We sometimes refer to it as doing the business of the cooperative, which sounds a little stuffy, but it really is the members coming and steering the ship. It's a unique and exciting event and this year perhaps it's a little more somber than others just because of the date, but nevertheless, I know that everyone, employees, directors and co op members are still looking forward to it. Caroline, thank you for coming in today to discuss Annual Meeting and giving us some insights into the decisions that were made this year.
[00:11:58] Speaker C: Thank you for having me. And again, I encourage everyone to check to see if they are the voting member and then to mark their calendars and come through to the annual meeting.
[00:12:08] Speaker A: And if you have any questions about that, feel free to give us a call here at the Cooperative. 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.
[00:12:22] 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 community.
