ROB
SCHWARTZ

Most consumers would not equate active involvement with their electric company with helping their community. But Miami-Cass REMC is not an ordinary utility. We’re a co-op, and our business model is meant to serve the members and the community in which it operates —not to make a hefty profit for investors five states away. Miami-Cass REMC’s customers are more than consumers, they are members of the cooperative. And therein lies the difference.

Our core purpose and mission are to provide safe, reliable and affordable power to our members. But as a co-op, we are motivated by service to the community, rather than profits. After meeting our annual expenses, we invest the extra money back into the co-op and the wider community. We depend upon the guidance and perspective of our members and board to help set priorities for the co-op and guide governance decisions. At our annual meeting, we raise issues for voting consideration by the general membership. Our board of directors is composed of members who live and work in our service area, for they are in a position to know where community investments are most needed.

Miami-Cass REMC is controlled by members who actively participate in setting policies and making decisions. This is why we value your participation in our annual meeting, to be held July 27 at Peru High School, and in other co-op events.

Miami-Cass has numerous ongoing programs that impact the community. Every summer, for example, we participate in the Indiana Youth Tour to Washington, D.C., and take local high school students to the nation’s capital to meet with lawmakers, enabling students to learn firsthand how our democracy works.

We have a scholarship program and support local youth programs, the YMCA, United Way and other organizations dedicated in helping our community. But the decisions and criteria for determining these programs are based on member guidance and feedback.

We recognize the vital role the REMC plays in energizing our local economy. But to continue to innovate and more effectively serve the community, we rely on you, our members, to provide guidance. We value your perspective, and we cannot operate effectively and help our community thrive without you. Please let your voice be heard. Weigh in at the annual meeting and consider joining one of our advisory boards or our board of directors. For more information about how you can become more involved, contact our director of member services, Kim Burton.

ROB SCHWARTZ is CEO of Miami-Cass REMC.