December s Winter Blast

Size: px

Start display at page:

Download "December s Winter Blast"

Horatio Stephens
6 years ago
Views:

1 February 2009 December s Winter Blast News & Information about your consumer-owned utility Salem Electric lineman Steve Gehley (L) and apprentice Chris Jones restore service to a Keizer residence. W e were all affected by the December storm, some more than others. It s always our goal to provide safe, reliable electric service; unfortunately, events like the snow and ice in December make that a challenge. Salem Electric has an aggressive preventative maintenance program which includes testing and inspecting equipment and trimming trees, but this storm was relentless with limbs and trees falling throughout our service area. Our crews worked around the clock rebuilding our system and restoring power. From December 21 through December 25 we had 3,061 members who experienced sustained outages (more than 30 seconds), with an average outage time of 2 hours, 6 minutes per affected member. There were an additional 14,508 members who experienced a momentary outage (less than 30 seconds) which often times doesn t even affect a digital clock. We appreciate your patience during the storm. h Linemen Ed Johnson (L) and Shawn McCloud reconnect power to a residence in West Salem.

2 Salem Electric is offering ten $1,000 college scholarships for the next school year through a program administered by the Oregon Student Assistance Commission (OSAC). This program is available to applicants of all ages who meet the eligibility requirements below. Salem Electric Scholarships Application Deadline: March 2, 2009 Application Options: Application forms are available at area high schools and colleges Apply online at getcollegefunds.org Applications can be printed and mailed with required attachments. Contact OSAC at: awardinfo@mercury.osac.state.or.us Or call OSAC at or SE Scholarship Eligibility: Applicants primary residence must be served by Salem Electric. Applicants may be high school graduates (including home-school graduates) or GED recipients and must be planning to enroll in a full-time undergraduate or graduate program. Salem Electric staff, board members, and their immediate family members are ineligible. h Scholarship recipients will be notified in April and will be asked to attend Salem Electric s Annual Meeting on May 13 to receive their award. In Memoriam Retired Salem Electric employee Loretta Sanford passed away December 3, Loretta worked as a General Ledger Specialist from November 1954 until her retirement in October Our deepest sympathies go out to Loretta s family. h Salem electric info bulletin

3 Join the Power of Community February 2009

4 Salem Electric Member Assistance Program In 1985 the Salem Electric Board of Directors made a commitment to aid our financially challenged members by approving a program to assist them in paying their electric bill. When implemented, the program had four main goals: 1 To provide special assistance and services for qualified senior members of Salem Electric. 2 To permit member-to-member assistance in support of the delivery of electricity. 3 To assist qualified seniors in reducing their electric bills through education and conservation. 4 To help demonstrate Salem Electric s fulfillment of its social role as a responsible member of the community. Since that time, the program guidelines have been adjusted to expand eligibility and income guidelines. One thing that hasn t changed is our dedication to helping our members. On average, 1,000 members annually receive financial assistance with their electric bill. h Used Cell Phones Wanted The Salem Police Department s (SPD) The DVRT program has partnered with Domestic Violence Response Team (DVRT) Salem Electric as a collection site. You can is in need of unwanted cell phones for their drop phones off at the Salem Electric office, 911-Cell Phone Program. 633 Seventh St. NW. The 911-Cell Phone Program provides victims of Before donating, please check the following: domestic violence, sexual assault, and stalking Phone has a battery and charger with donated cell phones (free of charge) as a key Phone is unlocked and any pin numbers component of a safety plan. are erased In order to reach a 911 operator a victim just Phone numbers once saved in the memory are needs a working phone. No service plan is erased (SPD does not reprogram the phone) necessary. All donated phones are tested to If your donation is unusable for the 911-Cell Phone ensure they will hold a charge and that they are Program, the phone/parts will be recycled operational in reaching 911. and sold with profits going to support services Donated cell phones are also distributed to the for domestic violence, sexual assault and victim advocacy programs at the Marion County stalking victims. District Attorney s Office and Marion County For additional information please contact SPD, Parole and Probation Kimberly Miller at Department in a wider , Ext. 4. h effort to provide phones to anyone in need. Salem electric info bulletin

5 Board Meeting Summary from December 17, 2008 Write-offs: Substation Loading: LED Decorative Lighting: Presented by: Carl E. Beach, From your board of directors Secretary/Treasurer February 2009 The write-offs in 2008 could potentially be higher than 2007 due to the economy and the recent cold weather. SE staff members continue to direct members to our Member Services Department and other community resources for assistance. During the extremely cold weather, engineering staff regularly checks and tracks substation demand. Even with the extreme weather conditions, SE s system has continued to have more than adequate capacity for the peak hours of 6 8 am and 5 8 pm. Sales of LED decorative lights have been steady in our Member Services Department with 359 boxes sold in November and 232 in December. Website: Rate Decrease: SE s website is currently being renovated and the new site should be active in March There will be several new pages including: Youth Page, Your Cooperative, Safety, Conservation, and the Environment. A 5% rate decrease will take effect January 1, Newsletter articles will be included throughout the year keeping members informed of a potential BPA wholesale rate increase in the fall of 2009 which would result in SE s rates going up. Upcoming Board Meetings February 24 March 17 April 28 Joe Van Meter President Jerry Berger Vice-President Board of Directors Carl Beach Secretary/Treasurer Jeff Anderson Alicia Bonesteele Paul Ennor Jim Dyer All board meetings are held at 7 pm at Salem Electric, 633 Seventh Street NW, Salem, Oregon danita heuberger (Since 1984) Executive Secretary Salem Electric is Danita. Juggling numerous projects. Whether it s providing support for our management team, coordinating projects or developing communication pieces, Danita is ready. She is the key to getting things done behind the scenes. Salem Electric is YOU salemelectric.com February 2009

6 From A Director ALICIA BONESTEELE, Director Dreaming of a white Christmas this holiday season was a bit more than we asked for. Our Salem Electric crews are always prepared for the unexpected, and diligently worked 24/7 in December to take care of us as co-op members, to keep the power on and to provide safety for all. If you live in an area like mine, where the hill and road slope creates a nearimpossible approach to a trouble spot, namely a blown transformer and a line down, different measures are employed to solve the problems. The Salem Electric truck became stuck and had to be towed. Never daunted, the crew walked up the slippery hill and got the job done. This is just one instance of many, year after year, that our crews take on to keep us comfortable. Sure, it s their job, but I say, Thanks for a job well done. We appreciate you. It never ceases to amaze me the countless activities the Salem Electric employees donate their time to in a year, to our wide community and to our members. Read on Recap of 2008 For Our Employees Bring Your Son or Daughter to Work event 12th annual employee appreciation week Wellness program & BBQ Fitness awards Service awards Retiree informational lunches Pottery night Annual picnic Annual dinner Family bowling night Family movie night SE-sponsored softball teams Special Recognition & Awards SE awarded first place safety award from NWPPA Third time recipient of the Al Loucks Business- Government Partnership Award; this time for contributions to West Salem park development SE Employees and Family Steve Gehley s wife Molly named Chuck Bowles High School Coach of the Year. Tony Schacher selected as Second Vice Chair of the NWPPA E&O Conference Policy Committee Laird Brown retires after 29 years and Larry Clack after 26 years Eric Weekly promoted to Groundman; Rob Thorn promoted to Equipment Operator Cindy and Bud Lenker spend two months working in Haiti Richard Spangler s wife Carmen donates a kidney to a friend For Our Members & Community Continued scholarship program for SE members Assisted qualified members with heating assistance Informational booth at Home Shows Installed holiday decorations and banners in West Salem Dedicated windmill at WSHS on April 22 Power Town presentations at area elementary schools Different Spokes Renewable Energy event participants SE helped sponsor or participated in several community activities including: Keizer Iris Festival, Magic At The Mill, Salem Art Fair, Oregon Symphony in Salem, The Salvation Army Bell Ringing, West Salem and Keizer Little League, Keizer Safety Open House, West Salem Spring Resource Fair, Salem Police Department Toy Drive, POWER After-School Programs, fundraisers at local elementary schools & donations to high school graduations, West Salem & Northgate Park Summer Concert Series Sponsor... just to name a few. SE Welcomes Susan Blount, Accountant Jason Bruce, Locator Roy Bryan, Operations & Purchasing Coordinator Chris Magee, Meter Reader Ben Hardwick, Groundman h Opinions expressed in News and Views are those of the writer and not necessarily those of the board unless otherwise indicated. SALEM ELECTRIC PO BOX SEVENTH STREET NW SALEM, OR PH: FAX: se@salemelectric.com salemelectric.com Printed on recycled paper with soy-based ink.

Plugged in. The Power Behind Your Power. to Altamaha EMC. APRIL 2018 The Official Newsletter of Altamaha Electric Membership Corporation

Plugged in. The Power Behind Your Power. to Altamaha EMC. APRIL 2018 The Official Newsletter of Altamaha Electric Membership Corporation Plugged in to Altamaha EMC APRIL 2018 The Official Newsletter of Altamaha Electric Membership Corporation Serving: Toombs, Montgomery, Emanuel, Treutlen, Laurens, Johnson and Tattnall The Power Behind