Northland Connection: July 2026

Moving Forward with Member Confidence

Now that this year’s annual meeting and director election are behind us, I want to begin by saying thank you. I appreciate every member who took the time to participate in this year’s election. More than 1,100 members cast a vote this year, which is among the highest voter turnouts we have seen at the cooperative. That is something worth recognizing, and I do not take it for granted.

At an electric cooperative, voting is more than just a yearly process. It is one of the clearest ways members exercise ownership. Our cooperative is not owned by outside investors. It is owned by the people we serve. That means members have a voice in who represents them in the boardroom and helps guide the direction of the cooperative.

That democratic foundation is important. It is part of what makes cooperatives different, and I believe it is one of the things that makes our cooperative strong. I am grateful for the participation we saw this year, and I hope we continue to see even more members take part in future elections. The more members who participate, the stronger and more representative our cooperative becomes.

This year’s election was also important because it was the first one conducted under the new campaign finance rules approved by members in the 2025 membership election. Those rules were approved with 95% support, which showed a clear desire from members for a transparent and fair election process.

Under the new rules, candidates were required to submit campaign finance disclosure forms throughout their campaigns. Those forms were published on our website as part of the voting guide, so members had access to that information before casting their ballots. We also had an unelected candidate disclose multiple campaign contributions, which was a first for our cooperative.

I believe that is a positive step forward. Transparency helps build trust, and trust matters in a cooperative. Members should feel confident that our election process is fair, consistent and open. I think these new rules were an improvement, and I appreciate the members who supported putting them in place.

When the votes were counted, members re-elected all three incumbent directors. That means our board of directors will remain unchanged as we move ahead. I look forward to continuing to work with our directors. They are a dedicated and intelligent group of people who take their responsibilities seriously. I believe they always keep the best interests of both our members and employees in mind as they lead the cooperative.

That kind of steady leadership matters, especially at a time when the electric utility industry is changing quickly. Our cooperative is thriving, but that does not happen by accident. It takes long-term planning, good decision-making, responsible investment and a clear focus on serving members. I am grateful to work with a board that understands those responsibilities and approaches them thoughtfully.

Of course, the annual meeting and election were not the only things happening over the last couple of months. It has been a very busy stretch for our employees, especially with the storms that have moved through our area. We have seen repeated rounds of severe weather, and many of our members have experienced high winds, heavy rain, downed trees and, in some cases, outages.

I encourage you to read Kendall’s column in this month’s newsletter, where he talks more about our storm preparation and how our system has performed. I share his pride in the way our linemen and employees respond each time these events occur.

Storm restoration is not easy work. It often happens in difficult conditions, at all hours of the day and night, and sometimes in areas where damage is widespread. Our crews move as fast as they safely can, and they are supported by employees across the cooperative who help coordinate response, communicate with members, manage outage information and keep the restoration process moving. I am proud of all of them.

I have also really enjoyed reading the member posts and comments on social media after the storms. Even when members are dealing with the inconvenience of an outage, so many take the time to thank our crews, encourage our employees or simply show patience and understanding. That means more than you may realize.

We always try to do our best for our members. We know reliable power matters. We know outages are frustrating. We know members are counting on us when the weather turns bad. To see the support and trust our members show during those moments is both heartwarming and encouraging.

That support also reminds me why this work matters. We are not just maintaining poles, wires and equipment. We are serving neighbors, families, farms, businesses and communities. Every decision we make, whether it is about an election process, system investment, storm response or daily operations, should come back to that responsibility.

Thank you again to everyone who participated in this year’s annual meeting and election. Thank you to the members who continue to place their trust in us. And thank you to our employees, who work hard every day to serve this membership well.

Members Re-Elect Directors at 2026 Annual Meeting

West District Director Kelly Parkhurst, North District Director David Edwards, and South District Director Ed Barger were re-elected at the 2026 cooperative Annual Meeting.

Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative members re-elected three directors during the 2026 Annual Meeting held May 28 at the cooperative’s headquarters in Kearney.

As a member-owned, not-for-profit electric cooperative, PCEC is governed by a nine-member board of directors elected by the membership to represent the cooperative’s three districts. Directors serve three-year terms, with one seat from each district up for election annually.

West District
Members in the West District (Buchanan and Platte counties) re-elected Kelly Parkhurst with 1,084 votes. Parkhurst has served on the PCEC Board of Directors since 2019 and is Executive Vice President at Nodaway Valley Bank.

North District
David Edwards was re-elected in the North District (DeKalb, Clinton and Caldwell counties) with 1,098 votes. Edwards has served on the board since 2021 and is vice president of business development for a cybersecurity company.

South District
In the South District (Clay and Ray counties), incumbent Ed Barger was re-elected with 623 votes. Challenger Rick Yoder received 508 votes. Barger joined the board in 2022 and is a retired firefighter and battalion chief.

Following the annual meeting, the board voted to retain its current officer positions. Davis remains board president, Wren continues as vice president, Larry Leachman remains treasurer and Kim Goepferich continues as secretary.

PCEC Employees Visit Kearney Electricity Summer School Program

In June, PCEC was invited to visit Kearney School District students participating in an Exploring Electricity summer school program at Kearney High School. Students learned the fundamentals of electric circuits and then wired model homes with working lights and fans. PCEC employees stopped by to visit the students and view their completed projects.

Kearney Middle School science teacher Michael Wernimont teaches the program and thanked the co-op for spending time with the students. “I would like to take the opportunity on behalf of the Kearney R-1 School District to thank you for your assistance with the summer school Explore Electricty Class. Your willingness to come to KHS and visit with the students is greatly appreciated. The students enjoyed each of you taking the time to listen to them speak about their house projects. It meant a lot to them. Thank you for sharing your daily tasks and responsibilities for students to understand. Your willingness to share how you arrived at your current position is useful and valuable for the students to hear.”

Commitment to Reliability Pays Off During Record Storm Season

If you have lived in this part of Missouri for very long, you know spring weather can humble you in a hurry.

This year has been a good reminder of that. Storm after storm has moved through our area, and we have seen more than our share of high winds, heavy rain, lightning and tornado warnings. The Kansas City metro has had a record tornado season and several tornadoes have touched down in areas our cooperative serves.

One of those storms hit especially close to home for me. I live in the eastern part of Excelsior Springs, where an EF-1 tornado touched down on May 18 just over the hill from me. Thankfully, my place came through with just a bunch of limbs down. Some of my neighbors were not quite as fortunate and lost some good-sized trees.

What stood out to me, though, was that my power only blinked once. It stayed on, and it stayed on for my neighbors, too. When you are standing there looking at limbs on the ground and trees snapped or uprooted nearby, you realize that is no small thing.
Over the last decade, our leadership team, with the support of the board of directors, has invested in strengthening and modernizing our electric system. Those investments are paying off.

That is also the kind of thing I have been hearing from members. Folks understand that if they do lose power during one of these storms, it must be a bad situation. More importantly, they also know our crews will get there as fast as they safely can and get the lights back on. Many members have noticed that other utilities nearby, sometimes even across the road, have not fared as well during the same storms.

One example came on Saturday, June 13, when a major storm swept through the Platte City area. After the storm, online outage reports showed that another electric utility serving Platte City had 78% of its customers without power. In the rural areas surrounding Platte City served by PCEC, we had 140 members without power, or about 3.5% of our Platte City area membership.

As board president, and as someone who has had the privilege of serving this cooperative for 35 years, I can tell you that kind of performance does not happen by accident. It is the result of years of intentional work, careful planning and a steady commitment to reliability.

Over the last decade, our leadership team, with the support of the board of directors, has invested in strengthening and modernizing our electric system. Those investments are paying off.

A big part of that work has been right-of-way maintenance. We have put a lot of money and effort into making sure our rights-of-ways are clear, and in storms like these, you can see the value of that work.

Clear rights-of-way make a real difference for a lot of members. They reduce the number of problems, help prevent outages and make it easier and safer for crews to restore power when damage does occur.

We also have an incredible engineering team that has put a tremendous amount of effort into upgrading our system over the last decade. In most parts of our service area, we now have the ability to reroute electricity around an outage. That process, known as backfeeding, allows us to isolate a problem area so most members nearby can have their power restored while our linemen rebuild or repair the damaged section.

That kind of flexibility requires a more modern electric system. It takes redundant feeders, centralized controls and the ability for dispatchers to monitor conditions in real time and operate switches remotely. Those may not be things members see every day, but they matter a great deal when the wind is blowing, trees are down and every minute without power matters.

Of course, even the best system still depends on people. When power does get knocked out, our local linemen move into action as quickly and safely as possible. They are highly skilled, dedicated employees who take a great deal of pride in serving this membership. Storm work is demanding. It often means long hours, difficult conditions and dangerous situations. I am grateful for the way our crews, dispatchers and support staff respond every time they are called upon.

Storms will always be part of life in our area. We cannot control the weather, and we cannot prevent every outage, but we can be prepared. We can keep maintaining our right-of-ways, keep modernizing our system and keep supporting the employees who keep the lights on.

As a member, I appreciate having reliable power at my own home. As board president, I am proud of how well this cooperative has performed through a very challenging storm season. And as someone who has served this cooperative for many years, I am especially proud that the decisions made over time with care and the hard work of our employees are making a real difference for the people we serve.

Electric Vehicle Charging

HELPFUL INFORMATION
If you are interested in an electric vehicle or a new EV owner, our website has information on best practices for charging to avoid unexpected increases to your home’s energy demand.

It’s important to understand when and how to charge. Charging at the wrong times or with the wrong settings can result in higher-than-expected electric bills with PCEC’s demand-based billing structure. Scan the QR code to learn more.

July heat can put your air conditioner to the test, making it a great time to check your system’s air filter. A dirty, clogged filter restricts airflow, forcing your cooling system to work harder than necessary to keep your home comfortable. That extra strain can reduce efficiency, increase energy use and contribute to unnecessary wear and tear on equipment. Inspect your filter monthly during periods of heavy air conditioner use and replace it if it appears dirty. A clean filter supports efficient operation and can even enhance indoor air quality.