For over 80 years your cooperative has been hosting annual meeting events for its membership. Although the event name changed this year, the celebration didn’t disappoint. 

Approximately 560 registered member-consumers, along with their families, braved the Aug. 26 heat to attend. They were greeted with an Indiana-shaped bamboo cutting board at registration, followed by a catered meal of pork chops and pulled chicken by Birky’s Catering. 

Before the event, the membership could vote in the board of directors’ election online or by mail. The certified results accounted for 2,300 votes cast before the meeting, yielding a participation rate of 11.2%. In-person voting was also available at the meeting. All member-consumers who voted in one of the three ways were given a $5 bill credit. 

At the meeting, attendees enjoyed musical entertainment by The Van-Dells. Other entertainment included bingo, a stage show by Chester Mouse Funhouse, balloon art and glitter tattoos. For those interested in electric cars, a Chevy Bolt, Tesla and Mustang were on display. 

To close out the evening, a short business meeting was held to announce the director election results and provide co-op updates by the leadership team. Dave Janney, at-large director, was re-elected for another three-year term. Also, Bill Bohling was voted in to serve as district 3 director and Katrina Harper as district 5 director. 

Thank you to everyone who came out to this year’s event. “Better Together” was the theme, and spending time with you proved that we as a community and a cooperative are better when we can come together.