Crowds packed the Porter County Expo Center on Thursday evening as Kankakee Valley REMC hosted one of its favorite yearly traditions – Member Appreciation Day and Annual Business Meeting. The event is a celebration of the energy co-op’s member-consumers, and also a gathering to discuss important updates on the state of the co-op.
More than 1,000 people filtered in and out of the expo center throughout the evening, enjoying free dinner, ice cream from Valpo Velvet, bingo, cornhole, kid’s entertainment, and up to $2,000 in cash prizes. It’s a night of fun and community bonding all leading into the important business that keeps the co-op running.
“Community is one of the most important things about being a cooperative,” said Scott Sears, CEO of KV REMC. “It’s important not only for us to engage with the community, but to find ways to bring them together and offer chances for them to interact with each other. Coming off what we experienced as a society with COVID, it’s all the more reason to bring people together, share ideas, share thoughts, and enjoy each other’s company.”
The Annual Meeting usually doubles as election night for the KV REMC’s Board of Directors, which all member-consumers get to participate in, but the election was uncontested this year. The business meeting instead focused on the co-op’s work to adapt to the ongoing challenges of rising energy costs and supply chain management.
“These are challenging times,” Sears said. “Energy prices are on the rise, you can see it when you go to the gas pump or the grocery store. We work to adapt and make changes.”
Mike Yankauskas, president of the KV REMC Board of Directors, helped lead the business meeting – but only after taking the opportunity to eat and chat with the gathered member-consumers.
“One of our founding principles is a commitment to the community,” he said. “Most of these folks are our friends, our neighbors. That’s the way it works in a co-op, every member has a stake, and they all own part of the co-op. This is a show of appreciation for that. We’ve had a great turnout. I think over a thousand people have come by, when you only need 350 for it to be a legal meeting.”
Amanda Steeb, director of marketing and communications for KV REMC, played a big role in planning the event – including making the call to include Valpo Velvet on the menu, which worked perfectly with the heat wave that struck the Region this week.
“This is our way of thanking our member-consumers, and it’s also something that sets us apart,” she said. “It’s not typical for a utility provider to host a big event like this, it makes us a little bit unique in what we do. It grows every year, and it’s awesome to see people excited to come out and meet us and our employees.”
KV REMC’s employees, from the office team to the linemen, help check people in, distribute food, run the bingo games, and more. Over time, they come to recognize a lot of familiar faces.
“We’ve tried to make things entertaining, with things like bingo and the cornhole tournament we started this year,” Sears said. “We’ve put a big focus on families, with something for people of all ages. For most of these people, we see them every year and they’ve developed that desire to be a part of the co-op.”
To learn more about Kankakee Valley REMC, visit www.kvremc.com
