If when walking through the co-op office you hear fingers vigorously tapping on a computer’s number keys or paper shooting out of a printer, you are most likely near our accounting department. Working diligently under deadlines, these employees process payroll and accounts payable, keep track of inventory, and gather financial data that your board of directors review at its month-end meeting. Along with the CFO and the board, I rely heavily on accountants and the information they provide to make informed decisions that benefit the cooperative and its members. 

While there are normal daily and monthly deadlines that must be met, accountants are unique because throughout the month their duties span from the smallest detail to the largest. Kelly Strahl has been an accountant here for 11 years. “Whether I am working on monthly financial statements or annual budgets, accounting is like a puzzle,” Strahl said. “It’s a great feeling once all of the pieces fit together and the puzzle has been solved.” 

Tina Blankman has been with us for 11 years as well. “I’m a plant accountant who loves to root around in debits and credits every day, so my life stays in balance,” Blankman said with a smile. “Sometimes I may be tracking inventory. The next day, I may be working on balanced scorecard metrics that really drive our cooperative vision.”

Accountant Linda Oathout joined the cooperative in October 2011. Her main duties are payroll and accounts payable. “Everyone loves being paid so people are typically pretty nice to me”, Oathout said, “I stay busy all the time, but January is the busiest month with all the extra work preparing W-2s, 1099s, and filing all the quarterly and annual tax reports. I always take a big sigh of relief once February hits and things get back to normal.” 

Kristi Wicker joined us in March 2018. She is responsible for billing, which is no easy task. She also reconciles our daily banking transactions with payments, invoices and deposits. “Most of my days are spent on banking and billing. These two “B’s” make for a better cooperative,” Wicker said. “With 11,785 electric meters that are billed every month, accurate billing is essential to our members and our cooperative.”

Thank you to these accountants who are quietly and diligently working behind the scenes to keep the co-op running smoothly and efficiently. They are an important spoke in the wheel at BCREMC!