www.kvremc.com
CONTACT USToll Free: 800-552-2622
Local: 219-733-2511
OFFICE HOURS 7:30 a.m.– 4 p.m. Central Time
Monday-Friday
STREET ADDRESS 8642 W. U.S. Highway 30
Wanatah, IN 46390
MAILING ADDRESSP.O. Box 157, Wanatah, IN 46390
EMERGENCY POWER OUTAGESTo report a power outage, please call 800-552-2622.
We are available to serve you 24 hours a day. When calling,
please provide the name in which your account is listed. Also, please be sure
to check your fuses or breakers.
KANKAKEE VALLEY REMC STAFFScott Sears, Chief Executive Officer
Lori Young, Executive Assistant
Angie Swanson, Office Manager
Jeff Newburn, Line Superintendent
Amanda Steeb, Communications and Marketing Director
Dave Howell, Purchasing and Facilities Manager
Eric Duttlinger, Director of Metering
Like us on Facebook www.facebook.com/KVREMC
When you think of October, crisp mornings, the changing color of the leaves, and, if you’re a sports fan, football might naturally come to mind.
But October is notable for another reason. It is National Cooperative Month. During this month, your cooperative, along with others across the country, celebrate who we are and, more importantly, the member-consumers we serve.
Kankakee Valley REMC was built by our member-consumers 80 years ago to bring electricity to our rural community. Today, the REMC still works for the common good of our community. We exist to provide safe, reliable and affordable energy for you. Equally important, though, is our mission of enriching and improving the quality of life for our member-consumers and the community we serve.
As a co-op, we are well-suited to meet the community’s needs because we are locally governed. Your elected board of directors and employee team are your neighbors. We are connected to the community in which we live. As a result, we get a firsthand perspective on local priorities and needs of our member-consumers.
A core cooperative principle, “Concern for Community,” is just one of Kankakee Valley REMC’s unique attributes. We partner with local organizations that share our concerns, whether through financial contributions or the volunteer efforts of our employees. Every time we give back, we strengthen the community.
Our member-consumers help us give back too. Through the Operation Round Up program, member-consumers round up their electric bills to the next dollar. The extra change helps non-profit organizations meet local needs. Since Kankakee Valley REMC introduced Operation Round Up in 2000, member-consumers have helped us give over $1 million back to the community.
We understand that many of you think of Kankakee Valley REMC as just your electric company. When you flip a switch at your home and the lights come on you have us to thank. But we are so much more than your electric provider. We are a local business that supports the community and the prosperity of all its residents.
The co-op leadership team is committed to staying involved in the community because your electric co-op was built by the community, for the community.
SCOTT SEARSCEO
OFFICE CLOSEDKV REMC’s office will be closed on
October 11 for “Community
Day”. Check the November issue to see how KV REMC employees helped the
community and member-consumers.
By the Community, For the Community
co-op news
OCTOBER 2019 5
6 JULY 2019
From September 2019 through January 2020, Kankakee Valley REMC will be conducting a survey of residential co-op member-consumers. This telephone survey is conducted every three years, and helps our power supplier, Wabash Valley Power Alliance, determine how much power will be needed in the near future.
The survey will be conducted by Oppenheim Research, a Tallahassee, Florida, firm with experience in a wide variety of research methods as well as a strong history of satisfied customers. Co-op members will be randomly selected, and 300 completed surveys will be done for our co-op. The survey is designed to last approximately 10-12 minutes, and will primarily focus on the appliances and items in and around your home that consume electricity.
The calls will take place Monday through Friday, beginning mid-afternoon and running until about 9 p.m. If you are called and don’t wish to participate, you will not be pressured to do so. We greatly appreciate those who do take the time to help us plan better for the future! If you have any questions about the process, please call the office at 219-733-2511.
Survey OngoingData gathereD will help plan for the future.
Harvest season is just around the
corner. Kankakee Valley REMC
reminds area farmers of the
dangers that power lines pose
when you’re moving machinery in
and out of the field.
The most common risk of
electrocution for farm workers,
according to the Iowa State
University Extension and Outreach,
comes from overhead power lines.
Tall equipment, such as grain
augers, combines and raised dump
truck beds, can easily become
entangled in the lines.
Remember these safety tips to
reduce the risk of electrocution
if your equipment should meet a
power line.
• If you can, it is safest to stay
inside the machinery until
emergency personnel or
someone from the electric co-
op can disconnect service to
the area where your equipment
is located. If you must get out
of the machinery (for example,
if the machinery is on fire),
don’t touch the machinery and
the ground at the same time
with any part of your body or
clothing.
• With the door open, prepare
to jump. Stand up, elbows
tucked into your stomach
and your hands held close to
your chest.
• Jump out and away from the
machinery, taking care to
land with your feet together
and touching. Don’t stumble.
• Shuffle away with your feet
touching. Don’t stop until
you’re at least three tractor
lengths away from the
machinery.
• Call 911 and ensure that no
bystanders come within 40
feet of the machinery.
• Once away from the
equipment, never attempt to
get back on or even touch the
equipment.
Kankakee Valley REMC hopes you
have a successful harvest season.
Please take care when moving
equipment to make sure you
are looking up and down when
moving and operating harvest
equipment. If you see something
that concerns you, please contact
our office at 219-733-2511.
Power lines and farm equipment: Know what to do
6 OCTOBER 2019
6 JULY 2019
It is becoming more common
to see electric vehicles on the
roadways. The new advanced
technology has people wondering,
is this the right car for me?
Kankakee Valley REMC recognized
this growing trend and saw an
opportunity to be an information
resource for our membership. At
a recent Electric Vehicle Test Drive
Experience event hosted at the co-
op, members were able to test drive
the cooperative’s Chevy Bolt.
“The idea behind the event wasn’t
to promote any specific model of
car, but was to help our member-
consumers understand that their
lifestyle doesn’t need to change as
an electric vehicle owner,” stated
Dave Howell, event coordinator.
The feedback from the
membership was great. People
were impressed with the space
available in the car, the acceleration
and the distance that they could
travel between charges.
If you didn’t get a chance to attend
the event, contact our office
anytime and request a drive. We
always enjoy the opportunity
to share the electric vehicle
experience with our membership.
Is an evfor you?
OCTOBER 2019 7
Cooperative Calendarof Student Art
Member-consumers will not be receiving
a Cooperative Calendar of Student Art
with their October magazine. Those who
wish to receive a calendar can call the KV
REMC office or pick one up. There is a
limited quantity available.
AARON AGOPIANLYNN ALKIREMAX BEIERTIFFANY BOROLOVDIANE BRAUNDANIEL BRUCESAMUEL Y. CONDESALI DASHTISCOTT DUPREETRACY R DWYERSHARON FLETCHERTHOMAS A. FORDLYNN FOSTERDAVID FRAZIERILINA GJIKOSKIABIGAIL GREGORYKEITH HALLANGELA HARDINMARCUS HARER. T. HARRISSTACEY HUTNICKCOURTNEY & MARK HYLEKMATTHEW JOHNSONRICHARD KALMASTRACY KOCHANCHUNSHENG LILOANCAREFRANCISCO LUEVANOCHRIS LYNNM D CONSTRUCTIONFANNIE MAEROBERT MARTINEZKELLY MCKEEHANCHARLES METCALF
JOSEPH MICHAELSRICHARD MILLETTENATIONSTAR MTG LLCDAVID & SUSAN NEGRELLIDANIEL NITUASHLEY NOREMPATRICIA O’NEALJEREMIAH PATRICKFREDERICK PATTERSONDON V PERKINSNICHOLAS PETRONEDOROTHY PITTSTONYA PRATEREDWIN T. RAINBOWRICHARD RAINBOWALEKSANDER RISTEVSKICHERYL SANTANAPHYLLIS SHAFFERAVERY & JULIE SMITHMARENE SOBKOWIAKDANIEL J. & NANCY SOLTISANTHONY SPARKSRODNEY S. STOLLEDWARD STRAUSSMARK THOMPSONTIMBER SEALNANCY L. VANGEMERTBRIAN VOGTJEFFREY S. WHITEROBERT LWHITTENPORTIA WILLIAMSMICHAEL WRONSKI
Do you recognize any of these names?Kankakee Valley REMC accounts for the following individuals and businesses have credit balances that were left when electric service was discontinued. If you know anyone on the list, please have them contact our office during normal business hours of Monday-Friday, 7:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. or you can email [email protected]
Since 1995, Indiana’s electric cooperatives have supported the Ronald McDonald House of Indiana in blue ribbon fashion. To date, cooperatives have donated more than $134,000 and have enabled Ronald McDonald House Charities to continue providing needed services to Indiana families.
This year, as part of our efforts, KV REMC is hosting a supply drive to collect some of the “most needed” items on the House’s wish list.
And we need your help!
Ronald McDonald House Charities
Wish List Drive
FOR MORE INFORMATIONand a complete list of items on the wish list, visit
kvremc.com
Central Indiana
Please drop off your donations to the KV REMC office by Friday, Dec. 6.
8 OCTOBER 2019