Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 5

Missouri
RURAL
Volume 76 | APRIL 2023 | Number 4
EDITORIAL STAFF:
Caitlin Whaley, VP communications
cwhaley@ruralmissouri.coop
Jim McCarty, editor
jmccarty@ruralmissouri.coop
Paul Newton, managing editor
pnewton@ruralmissouri.coop
Megan Backes, creative director
mbackes@ruralmissouri.coop
Zach Smith, field editor
zsmith@ruralmissouri.coop
Angie Jones-Wheeler, designer
ajones@ruralmissouri.coop
ADVERTISING:
Mary Davis, production manager
mdavis@ruralmissouri.coop
573-659-3400
National Advertising Representative:
American MainStreet Publications;
611 S. Congress St., Suite 504; Austin, TX 78704
CONTACT:
Rural Missouri
2722 E. McCarty St., Jefferson City, MO 65101
573-659-3423 info@ruralmissouri.coop
Postmasters: Send address changes to Rural Missouri,
2722 E. McCarty St., Jefferson City, MO
65101. Subscribers: Report change of address to
your local cooperative. Do not send change of address
to Rural Missouri.
Advertising standards: Advertising published in
Rural Missouri is accepted on the premise that
the merchandise and services offered are accurately
described and sold to customers at the advertised
price. Rural Missouri and Missouri's electric
cooperatives do not endorse any products or
services advertised herein. Advertising that does
not conform to these standards or that is deceptive
or misleading is never knowingly accepted by
this publication. The acceptance of all advertising
shall be in the sole discretion of the editor.
Rural Missouri (ISSN 0164-8578) (USPS 473000)
is published monthly by the Association
of Missouri Electric Cooperatives, 2722 E.
McCarty Street, Jefferson City, MO 65101, Caleb
Jones, CEO/executive vice president. Individual
subscription rate: $12 per year or $25 for three
years, taxes and postage included. Group rate for
members of participating RECs $3.24, plus taxes
and postage, paid from equity accruing to the
member. Delivery as specified by subscriber. If not
specified, delivery will be by periodical class mail
at subscriber's expense. Periodical Class postage
paid at Jefferson City, MO, and additional mailing
offices. Copyright 2023, Association of Missouri
Electric Cooperatives. Call for reprint rights.
Circulation of this issue: 580,204
RM | PERSPECTIVES
An expert in your corner
by Caleb Jones | cjones@amec.coop
never know what I'm going to
find when my brother shoots me
a text. Recently it was a photo of
a spittoon at the Bates County
Courthouse. It made me chuckle for
a lot of reasons. I knew right away he
was in the middle of a trial back in
God's country.
I
Some of the best lessons I learned
were when I was a small-town lawyer.
When you are in a courtroom, you
have to figure out the lay of the land
pretty quick. I always knew when I
saw the judge or even the opposing
counsel walk in the courtroom wearing
cowboy boots or chewing tobacco
you could rely on one thing: You were
dealing with a straight shooter who
was from rural Missouri.
Make no mistake, they were going
to be tough, but fair. Most importantly,
when they gave you their
word, you could take it to the bank.
That's why I enjoy working with
the folks at Missouri's electric cooperatives
so much. The people that work
at your local co-op are the same folks
you see at church, the coffee shop
and the local high school basketball
game. Much like finding a good rural
Missourian in the courtroom, when
you talk to your local co-op employee,
they are someone you can trust.
When Lindsey and I built our
farmhouse on Boone Electric Cooperative's
lines I used their services a
lot in order to decide what appliances
and HVAC system would give me the
best return on my investment. They
even helped me get tax credits for a
ground-source heat pump, reducing
my electric bill dramatically in the
process.
It doesn't make much sense for the
guy who sells you electricity to help
you figure out ways to use less, but
that's what makes our electric co-ops
so great.
Sometimes doing the right thing
may not be the most profitable way
to go. Your electric co-op is able to do
this because of two very important
reasons.
One, cooperatives are non-profit
businesses - which means they
are not sharpening their pencils at
the end of the year to see how much
money they made.
In fact, if they do make a profit,
they give it back to the members of
the cooperative as a capital credit.
Some of the best life lessons I learned came
when I was a small-town lawyer trying cases
in courtrooms like this one in the Bates
County Courthouse.
The other fact that makes cooperatives
so special is they are member-owned
and governed. That means
every one of you owns a piece of those
wires, poles and transformers that
keep your lights on.
Cooperative members also get to
elect a board of directors to run the
cooperative.
This structure has allowed electric
cooperatives to focus on doing what
is best for their members instead of
looking at the bottom line.
I always say that if everyone did
what was right all the time, I probably
would have just stayed on the farm
and raised hogs instead of going to
law school.
Sure seems to me like the electric
co-ops have figured things out. It's
good to have an expert in your corner.
Caleb is the executive vice president
and CEO of the Association of Missouri
Electric Cooperatives and a member of
Boone Electric Cooperative.
APRIL 2023 | RURALMISSOURI.COOP 5
http://www.facebook.com/RuralMissouri https://co.pinterest.com/ruralmissouri/ https://www.youtube.com/ruralmissouri/ http://www.RURALMISSOURI.COOP

Rural Missouri - April 2023

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Rural Missouri - April 2023

Contents
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - Cover1
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - Cover2
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - Contents
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 4
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 5
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 6
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 7
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 8
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 9
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Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 11
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - 12
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Rural Missouri - April 2023 - Cover3
Rural Missouri - April 2023 - Cover4
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