Around 1,300 Kankakee Valley REMC members attended the member appreciation day and annual business meeting festivities at the Porter County Fairgrounds last Thursday. This is an annual event for the member-owners of the Kankakee Valley REMC cooperative. The evening included children’s entertainment by Granpa Cratchet, Bingo, a cornhole tournament and the business meeting.
Located in Wanatah, Indiana, Kankakee Valley REMC is a rural membership cooperative providing electric service to the areas of Lake, Porter, LaPorte, Pulaski, St. Joseph, Starke and Marshall counties.
“Kankakee Valley REMC is a member-owned cooperative. So, what that means is that anyone who receives electricity from us are owners of the cooperative,” said Scott Sears, CEO at KV REMC. “This event is an opportunity for us to interact and celebrate with the membership and thank them for being part of the cooperative.”
Community is important for the cooperative, and Thursday night was one example of what sets KV REMC apart.
“Electric cooperatives are community focused. We focus on the needs of our membership and support the needs of our communities,” said Sears. “Hosting events like the member appreciation day and annual business meeting is unique to our organization. There aren’t many corporations that offer you the opportunity to speak one on one with the leaders of their organization. We want our membership’s feedback, and we want to know the people we serve.”
An important program that embodies the community commitment of KV REMC is their Operation Round UP program.
“Over 20 years ago, we started a program called Operation Roundup where the members can round up their electric bill each month. The money is then given back to non-profits of the community in the form of grants,” said Mike Yankauskas, President of KV REMC’s board. “ Over $1.6 million dollars have been given back to non-profits to support our mission of serving the community and those in need. Grants have supported fire departments, first responders, schools, and food banks just to name a few. This organization is overseen by a group of volunteers who meet quarterly to review grant applications.”
The business meeting included updates from the leadership team, recognized the students who completed their term as Junior Board of Directors with a $1,000 scholarship and drew for prizes.
“When we've heard from our membership, they want to talk about affordability and reliability,” said Sears. “They want us to be able to supply them with whatever electricity they need. They want it to be reliable, and they want it to be affordable. That's really what we are going to focus on in the coming years. We're looking at different avenues and different aspects of ways to operate the business that can be more reliable such as introducing batteries and perhaps even having some of our own renewable assets.”
Thursday night has been an annual tradition for some of the members like Starlia and Jack Marks who have been coming for 20 years.
“Tonight, has been wonderful,” said Starlia Marks. “They go all out. The bingo is wonderful, and the desserts are wonderful. They are very kind to everybody to have this.”
From Operation Round up to the people who work for KV REMC, the members have been satisfied with the work that KV REMC does.
“They are very transparent,” said Jack Marks. “The people that work there are amazing. I've got a cousin that works there, and another one of my cousins just retired after 40 some years.”
KV REMC celebrated members like the Marks’ who came out to the event.
“I would just like to thank everybody for coming here today, and we have had a wonderful turnout,” said Sears. “It's a great chance for us to celebrate the members and get back to them.”
For more information on the Kankakee Valley REMC, please visit https://www.kvremc.com/.
