FALL REMINDERS
By Derrick Rutherford
Fall is upon us and the year is nearing an end. With less sunlight and cooler weather, trees turn magnificent colors before dropping their colorful leaves to the ground. And let's face it, we may not want to rake the leaves, but we all want to jump into a huge pile of leaves! Fall is also the time when children (and lots of adults) look forward to selecting the perfect pumpkin from the local pumpkin patch and racing through the corn maze. Hopefully I have painted a good enough picture of fall to remind you of some of your fun experiences. But fall is also a good time of year to remind you about a few upcoming things at DS&O.
Director Elections - We will soon be accepting petitions for three seats on the board of directors. Our coverage area is divided into three districts. Individuals who wish to run for a director’s seat need to be active members of the cooperative and bona fide residents of the district they wish to represent. Information packets for those seeking to be candidates will be available for pick up at our office in Solomon, as well as online, beginning December 1, 2019.
Scholarships - In 2017, DS&O’s board of directors approved a scholarship program. This program awards four $1,000 scholarships to its members, or their dependents, who have chosen to pursue higher education in Kansas. Because of the overwhelming response from our youth, the board has now doubled the number of scholarships to be awarded in 2020. We contact all the area high schools in our service territory annually to remind them about these scholarships. Check our website for more information. The application deadline is February 7, 2020.
Youth Tour - Every year we award two “once in a lifetime” trips to two high school juniors whose parents are members of the cooperative.
One trip is to Washington, D.C. and it takes place in mid-June. Electric cooperatives across the country select students for this trip and these students (roughly 1,800) get to experience a trip unlike any other. They visit Old Town Alexandria, attend a theater performance, tour the Holocaust Memorial Museum, Arlington National Cemetery, Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, and the Smithsonian Museum. They also have meetings with legislators and their staff on Capitol Hill.
The other trip is to the Youth Leadership Camp in Steamboat Springs, Colorado in mid-July. Students join fellow students from Kansas, Colorado, Oklahoma, and Wyoming that were selected by their respective cooperatives to attend the camp. During their stay, students visit Lookout Mountain and tour Trapper Coal Mine and the Craig Generation Plant. In addition to participating in a variety of activities, students gain hands-on business experience by forming and operating their own cooperatives.
Contact our office today to learn more about these trips. The application deadline is March 6, 2020.
SmartHub - Our SmartHub online and mobile app provide a lot of features that help you manage your account. SmartHub allows you access to your account information anytime from anywhere you can get online. Track your usage and take the guesswork out of your bill. Through detailed graphs, you will be able to check your usage history (hour by hour), which can help you find ways to reduce and save. Go to your online app store and download it today!
Power Quality - If you ever experience power quality issues, such as flickering/blinking lights, please report them to us at 800-376-3533. These conditions are not normal and should be addressed.
Oh yeah. One more reminder. With Thanksgiving just a few weeks away, remember to figure 20 minutes of cooking time per pound of turkey! 🙂