Chad Stone
I have not always been a fan of change. Change can be hard, and for most people it often brings anxiety and uncertainty. As I reflect on the last 50 years of my life, there has been lots of change. Sometimes it was unwanted and painful, but necessary for growth. Other times change brought joy and happiness. Some changes over the years were by choice, but more times than not it was out of my control.
We all experience change in our lives. It’s what shapes us and stretches us out of our comfort zones. It gives us stories and memories to share with our friends and family. It’s what helps us learn and grow.
We all have the opportunity to respond positively to change, to view it as an opportunity for personal growth, to learn new experiences and improve our daily lives. We can use those past experiences to build positive change for the future.
As members of an electric cooperative, it is important that we ensure that any change for Little River Electric Cooperative is effective and efficient, meaning we want to achieve desired results while minimizing wasted time, resources and effort. One way in which we can ensure this type of change is by continuing to provide transparent communication and regularly keeping you updated on cooperative initiatives, rate changes and upcoming projects. This transparent communication will also require member feedback. We encourage your feedback to identify areas of improvement and to include your concerns in our decision-making process.
Effective change is also possible when we have a community focus, collaborating with local partnerships in economic development. Understanding the needs and concerns of local businesses and schools and understanding energy initiatives that contribute to jobs and economic growth allows us to be informed in our decision-making processes.
As we’ve communicated before, a rate increase is one of the changes we’re facing in the coming year. We are continuing to look at all the ways we can cut costs and provide more with less in order to keep the lights on and rates as affordable as they can be. This includes working with our materials supplier, CEEUS, to buy supplies at lower costs, working with our generation partner, Central Electric Cooperative, to make sure our members are getting electricity at the lowest possible price and working together to fight energy policy that drives up costs for cooperative members. This change is challenging but together we are working to minimize the impact to our members where possible.
Whether 2025 is already bringing about change in your life or not, you can be confident it is on the horizon. We have a choice in how we respond. My prayer looking ahead would be that any change we find ourselves in whether solicited or not we would sow seeds of peace and growth as we seek to build a better future for our families and community.
CHAD STONE
General Manager
