June 2020
Just as summer winds down and the afternoons are cooling off, this year’s election cycle is heating up (who thought it could get any hotter?). While the presidential race makes daily headlines, numerous other state, local, and national offices are being contested. The results of the election will set a tone and direction for government policies nationally and for Ohio, which will likely affect the operation of your electric cooperative.
Smiles and giggles are everywhere as each child follows his or her butterfly. The adults stand ready with their cameras and their own smiles.
Every year, The Butterfly Migration Celebration is held at the The Children’s Garden in Lima. It’s the biggest project Allen County Master Gardeners puts together.
Master Gardeners are dedicated to promoting and teaching environmentally sound research-based gardening practices. This is done through many different projects held throughout the year.
Steve Rhodes lives for challenges. As the CEO of the Choctawhatchee Electric Cooperative (CHELCO), he leads an organization of 140 employees and serves more than 48,000 members in four counties in the Florida panhandle. He is also responsible for a utility services subsidiary with another 50 employees and is the immediate past president of the Touchstone Energy® Cooperatives board of directors.
National Cooperative Month has been celebrated in October for more than half a century. This year’s theme, “Cooperatives Build,” recognizes not only the physical facilities needed to serve members, but also the important role that cooperatives play in building community. Nationwide, 40,000 cooperative businesses, including electric cooperatives, credit unions, and agricultural cooperatives, offer various services and products to 120 million people. While each cooperative is unique in some ways, we all share a common set of business principles.
Not-for-profit electric cooperatives have a responsibility not only to fulfill the needs of their consumer-members, but to help their neighbors in need. To that end, Operation Round Up was born.
Operation Round Up is a voluntary program in which more than 200 electric cooperatives across the country participate, including most Ohio electric cooperatives. The programs go by different names, but they all operate under the same premise: Small change makes a big impact in communities all across Ohio.
Heading along Ohio’s Interstates and limited access highways, we sometimes forget there are amazing attractions at some of the exits.
Just off US Route 23 is Wyandot Popcorn Museum, located in downtown Marion. Famous for collecting and restoring the world’s largest collection of popcorn antiques and peanut roasters, the collection will fascinate anyone interested in antiques, collectables, and wonderful memories of another time. Two examples are more than 100 years old.
“Why do you climb this mountain?” I asked Little Man, an enthusiastic, yet slow-speaking porter nicknamed for his compact size.
“I want to make your biggest dream come true,” he said, turning to look at me with all-too-serious eyes. “If you reach the top, it makes us very happy.” Then he proceeded to pump water into my canteen with his bare hands, as he’d done every day after breakfast before hitting the trail, saving my fingers from the biting wind of Summit Crater Camp’s 18,700-foot elevation.
Another important election day has arrived. Some view the election as historic. Some are passionate about candidates and issues, and others are disappointed with the negative tone that the various campaigns and protests have taken. Regardless of your view of the candidates or the issues, please take time to appreciate the rights of expression that we have been given. Our veterans, who are honored in November, have sacrificed much for our rights, and those who are no longer with us have paid the ultimate price for our freedoms.
When people visit a museum, its gift shop is usually the last thing they see. During the holidays, however, museum stores should be your first destination for gift ideas. These very special stores reflect the collections of their parent institutions, and they carry a wide range of items — regional publications, landmark photos, works by local artists, tasteful toys, and elegant accessories — that are sure to inspire, surprise, and delight everyone on your list. Here are some of our favorites.
