Kitchel re-elected; Gehret chosen for board of trustees

Jack Kitchel was reelected while Dan Gehret was elected to the Board of Trustees at the Darke Rural Electric Cooperative, Inc. annual meeting of members March 19 at the Lighthouse Christian Center in Greenville.

Kitchel has been a Darke REC member for 44 years and has been on the Board of Trustees for 24 years, currently serving as president. Gehret has been a member of Darke REC for 23 years. He has served on the cooperative’s nominating committee for 15 years and has been chairman of the board of Darke REC’s Operation Roundup for five years.

Board President Kitchel spoke about the costs associated with the March ice storm and September wind storm. He said the co-op rebuilt 30 miles of line in the past year and is continuing to rebuild and is replacing wires and poles that were part of the original system. Kitchel also thanked members for their support of Operation Round-up. He said members rounding up their electric bills to the next dollar each month has resulted in $132,294 going back to help the community. Kitchel awarded retiring trustee Robert (Bob) Buschur with a plaque for his 30 years of service.

In his report, Executive General Manager Ted Holsapple talked about the status of the cooperative. Holsapple encouraged members to sign the Our Energy, Our Future card in the handouts they received upon arriving. The card will be sent to congressmen and senators to let them know how co-op members feel about pending energy policy. He told the members the cap and trade proposal by the government is simply a tax that is projected to be at least a 25 percent increase in your electric bill. “Our goal is to keep electricity reliable and affordable,” he explained.

Guest speaker Pat O’Loughlin, COO and vice president of Engineering and Power supply for Buckeye Power, Inc., talked about the challenging economic times for rural Ohio. He said coops are continuing to make required environmental investments, keeping ahead of the curve. “We are going to have the cleanest burning power plants in Ohio,” he said.

O’Loughlin said co-ops will continue to add renewable generation as cost effectively as possible, pointing to ag waste bio-digesters and an Iowa wind farm from which Ohio’s co-ops are receiving renewable energy. He also spoke about climate change legislation and how it will effect electric rates. He said rates could increase significantly, as much as $50 to $100 a month, rolling through the economy to cause higher costs for groceries, goods and services.