Saying goodbye to our old friends

By
Posted on Jan 26 2017 in Paulding-Putnam Electric Cooperative

GEORGE
CARTER

Journeyman Lineman Doug Burtch retired from PPEC in late January after serving our cooperative for more than 22 years.

One of the toughest parts of any job is saying goodbye to friends as they leave for retirement or other career opportunities.

Each year, it seems like a long-term employee or board member retires, and 2017 will be no exception. We will see one employee and one board member retire in the first quarter of the year.

Doug Burtch, journeyman lineman, retired in late January. Burtch said goodbye after working more than 22 years for Paulding Putnam Electric. Burtch’s quiet diligence and dedication will be missed by all his coworkers and our members. Everyone at PPEC wishes him a long and healthy retirement.

Gerald (Jerry) Sorg will be leaving our board of trustees this March after serving for 15 years. While on the board, Sorg served in many capacities, including serving as policy committee chairman for several years. Recently, Sorg served as the cooperative’s representative on the Indiana Electric Cooperatives’ board of directors. He also served on IEC’s government affairs committee.

Jerry Sorg, retiring PPEC board of trustees member, has represented District 1 for 15 years. District 1 includes Allen and Adams counties in Indiana, and Marion, Madison, Monroe, Preble and Union townships in Ohio. Sorg will be honored at the PPEC annual meeting on March 18.

Sorg is a well-respected board member and has served the Paulding Putnam Electric Cooperative board of trustees and all the members well over the past 15 years. Sorg’s insightful leadership will be missed.

All this said, with change comes opportunity. Sorg’s retirement from the board of trustees will create an open seat from that district.

Trustee candidate petitions have been received and, in the March issue of the magazine, candidate profiles will be provided for review prior to the election. This board of trustees election is unique to cooperatives because board members are co-op members who are elected by their neighbors locally. You have a say on who represents you on the PPEC board of trustees.

Please watch for upcoming election materials (if an election is held in your district) and participate in this important process.

GEORGE CARTER is CEO/general manager of Paulding Putnam Electric Cooperative.