Cooperative Living November/December 2021 - 4

Our Communities
Vol. 75, No. 11
ISSN 1529-4579
STEVENJOHNSON
Editor
LAURA EMERY
Deputy Editor
GREGG MACDONALD
Senior Writer/Editor
JOHN GROTT
Creative Services Coordinator
AMANDA S. CUNNINGHAM
Marketing Coordinator
JIM ROBERTSON
Director, Special Projects
TOMMY CAMPBELL
Digital Producer
NINAJACOBS
Administrative Coordinator
To change your subscription,
contact your electric cooperative.
For editorial inquiries, contact
the magazine at (804) 346-3344
or editor@co-opliving.com.
Published by the Virginia, Maryland &
Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives
RUSSELL G. BROWN
Chair
WADE C. HOUSE
Vice Chair
C. MICHAEL SANDRIDGE
Secretary/Treasurer
BRIAN S. MOSIER
President & CEO
Board of Directors: Christopher D. Bott, Belvin Williamson Jr.,
A&N; C. Michael Sandridge, Michael J. Keyser, BARC; George
N. Goin, Gary E.Wood, Central Virginia; Robert E. Arnold,
Micheal E. Malandro, Choptank; Jeannette S. Everett, Steven
A. Harmon, Community; James E. Huffman, Jeff M.Ahearn,
Craig-Botetourt; Patricia S. Dorey, Gregory Starheim, Delaware;
Fletcher B. Jones, John C. Lee Jr., Mecklenburg; Russell
G. Brown, Brad H. Hicks, Northern Neck; Wade C. House,
Stan C. Feuerberg, Northern Virginia; David T. Kindle, Brad
Coppock, Powell Valley; Herbert R. Patrick, Casey J. Logan,
Prince George; Sanford Reaves Jr., John D. Hewa, Rappahannock;
G. Todd Van Horn, Greg S. Rogers, Shenandoah Valley; Frank
W. Bacon, Jeffrey S. Edwards, Southside.
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COOPERATIVE LIVING (USPS 473-300)
is published 10 times a year, monthly except
for combinedJanuary/February and November/
December issues, by the VMD Association of
Electric Cooperatives. POSTMASTER, address
changes should be sent to: Cooperative Living,
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they are asked to inform the Association.
Genevie Boarman assists
Rachel Hines, Lexington, Va.
Melissa Rogers,
Lekson Associates
Coming Out On Top
ASHLEY KNAPP COULDN'T HELP BUT FEEL A LITTLE TUG AT THE HEART as she showed a group of high
school-age girls the secrets of operating a bucket truck.
Knapp, who represents Altec, a manufacturer of hydraulic equipment, chanced upon the electric
utility business years ago. So she appreciated the opportunity to give participants at the first Girl Power Camp
a more proper introduction to the field.
" I think it's important that we pull diversity into an industry that's not been diverse until here recently, "
she says. " To see young folks and young females looking at it is exciting. It's not limited to the gender.
It's the exposure and the understanding that you can do it, too. "
Knapp was among the presenters at the camp, sponsored in September by the Virginia, Maryland &
Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives at its training center in Palmyra, Va. Eleven girls representing
six electric cooperatives climbed poles, wielded hot sticks and learned how to lower and raise the bucket
on an Altec-Rappahannock Electric Cooperative truck.
" When I first started in this industry, it was not uncommon for me to be the only female at an event, "
adds Melissa Rogers of North Carolina-based Lekson Associates, a manufacturer's representative.
" Now, that's changing a lot. We see female workers in the field, we see female engineers, in business roles,
all over the place. "
In other words, opportunity awaits those who grab it. As McKenzie Hines, a participant from
ounty (Va.) High School, put it: " It makes you proud to see all these women here to do
Rockbridge
ockbridge County (Va.) High School, put it: " It makes you proud to see all these women here to do
something outside the box. " 
For more, visit vmdaec.com and searchfor Ògirl power camp.Ó
2 | November-December 2021
co-opliving.com
Anna Pencak,
Louisa, Va.
Our Communities is a story and picture
feature that celebrates the spirit of
co-op country. Have a submission that
depicts your co-op or community?
Contact editor@co-opliving.com.
Ashley Knapp of Altec explains
the operation of a bucket truck
to Lexie Terpening (far left) of
Center Cross, Va., and Braelyn
Durbin of Winchester, Va.

http://www.vmdaec.com http://www.co-opliving.com

Cooperative Living November/December 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Cooperative Living November/December 2021