Cooperative Living February 2021 - 6

Brights | from Staff Reports
Co-op Leader
The board of directors of the Virginia,
Maryland & Delaware Association of
Electric Cooperatives
has selected Brian S.
Mosier as the
association's next
president and CEO,
effective April 1.
Mosier will
succeed Richard G.
Johnstone Jr., who
will retire from
the association after 36 years, the
last 22 as general manager and then
president and CEO.
" Brian is a proven leader who is
well-known and well-regarded by our
member systems with a strong track
record of success in all of the positions
he's held, " says VMDAEC Board
Chair Patricia S. " Pat " Dorey.
Mosier is VMDAEC's chief operating
officer and has been with the association
since 2013.
" We have a great employee team
in place, a supportive board, strong
member systems and all of the
ingredients to continue providing
outstanding service to the electric
cooperatives in our region, "
Mosier says.
Grant Call
The U.S Department of Agriculture's
Rural Business-Cooperative Service is
accepting applications from farmers and
rural entrepreneurs who want to expand
production and marketing of agricultural
products.
The applications for Value-Added
Producer Grants run through March 22.
Independent agricultural producers,
producer groups, farming cooperatives
and producer-based businesses are
eligible to apply for grant funding,
totaling $33 million
for fiscal year 2021.
Interested
applicants are
encouraged to
contact the Virginia
Foundation for
Agriculture,
Innovation and Rural
Sustainability at
vafairs.com. The foundation is an affiliate
of Virginia Farm Bureau Federation.
" We've been working with the ValueAdded
Producer Grant program for
over 15 years and it remains one of our
most valuable and most utilized services, "
says Whitney Perkins, VFBF assistant
director of agriculture, development
and innovation.
Power Up
After a year of lower electricity
consumption, federal analysts believe
the demand for power will tick
upward in 2021.
The U.S. Energy Information
Administration
sees total
consumption
rising by 1.3%
in 2021, after
tumbling by
3.9% in 2020.
Colder temperatures
in the
first quarter of
2021 will lead to increased electricity
use, EIA said.
In addition, many people are
still at home more because of the
pandemic, which tends to bump
up daily residential consumption.
The overall numbers mask differences
in various sectors, according
to EIA.
While residential use is up, the
agency says energy consumption
for the commercial sector in the
region that includes Virginia,
Maryland and Delaware will not
recover from the pandemic until
at least 2022. 
MailBag
WELL-TRAINED CREWS
On Dec. 9, 2020, at about 7 p.m.,
a pole on the corner of the street was
hit by a tractor-trailer. At 11 p.m.,
the crew was ready to replace the pole
and turned off our power. I walked
down to the corner and watched as
the crew of eight worked together in
wonderful harmony.
Your magazine always talks about
the excellent training your line technicians
receive and I was privileged to
watch them in action, plus seeing a 50foot
pole replaced was quite amazing!
- Diane L. Norris, Winchester, Va.
SHORE DELIVERY CORPS
Kudos to the Shore Delivery Corps
featured in your January issue. My
4 | Cooperative Living | February 2021
husband and I were introduced to
Shore Delivery by a friend, Connie
Owens (through the United Methodist
Church), because we were in that
older-age category of those most
susceptible to COVID-19. Connie
picked up our groceries for two weeks
in March and then for the next 14
or 15 weeks, we had Shore Delivery
with wonderful, helpful volunteers
delivering our groceries right to
our door.
What a blessing they were!
- Millie Frashure, Bloxom, Va.
ENJOYABLE ARTICLES
We wanted to thank you for the
articles in the magazine month after
month. We thought we'd finally let
you know that the January 2021 issue
was no less full of enjoyable articles.
We particularly enjoyed this issue's
Co-op People, Farm Life, Energy Sense,
Co-op Principles, Smart Connect and
Field Trip columns.
Thank you so much!
- Matt & Carolyn Rogers, Bracey, Va.
THANK YOU!
Thank you to your staff! The
Cooperative Living magazine is
enjoyable from cover to cover.
- Jean Marino, Front Royal, Va.
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Cooperative Living February 2021

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