Cooperative Living September 2017 - 4

Viewpoint | by Richard G. Johnstone Jr., Executive Editor
ISSN 1529-4579
RICHARD G. JOHNSTONE JR.
Executive Editor
BILL SHERROD
Editor
LAURA EMERY
Field Editor
JANET BAILEY
Production Manager
LAURIE MILLS,
Apple Eye Studio, LLC
Graphic Designer
AMANDA S. CUNNINGHAM
Advertising Sales
TOMMY CAMPBELL
Design & E-Media Specialist
To contact magazine:
9 a.m.-5 p.m. M-F
Phone: (804) 346-3344
Or at any time:
Fax: (804) 346-3448
Email: bsherrod@vmdaec.com
Web: www.co-opliving.com
Published by the VA, MD & DE Association
of Electric Cooperatives
JAMES E. HUFFMAN
Chairman
HERBERT R. PATRICK
Vice Chairman
FLETCHER B. JONES
Secretary/Treasurer
RICHARD G. JOHNSTONE JR.
President & CEO
Board of Directors: R. Wayne Browning, Belvin Williamson, Jr.,
A&N; C. Michael Sandridge, Michael J. Keyser, BARC; George N.
Goin, Gary E. Wood, Central Virginia; Robert E. Arnold, Michael
I. Wheatley, Choptank; Jeannette S. Everett, Steven A. Harmon,
Community; James E. Huffman, Shawn C. Hildebrand, CraigBotetourt;
Patricia S. Dorey, J. William Andrew, Delaware;
Fletcher B. Jones, John C. Lee, Jr., Mecklenburg; Russell G.
Brown, Greg W. White, Northern Neck; Wade C. House, Stan C.
Feuerberg, Northern Virginia; Dale McNiel, Randell W. Meyers,
Powell Valley; Herbert R. Patrick, Micheal E. Malandro, Prince
George; Linda R. Gray, Kent D. Farmer, Rappahannock; Larry C.
Howdyshell, Michael W. Hastings, Shenandoah Valley; Frank W.
Bacon, Jeffrey S. Edwards, Southside.
Comforting Certainties
In a world awash in change, it's comforting to know that the man-made
principles underlying cooperative businesses are as strong as the natural
laws underlying the turning of the seasons.
small rectangle of plastic and circuitry
empowers us to send messages, and receive
them from, around the world. Amazing.
It gives us access to unlimited information.
Unbelievable. It enables us to take and send
photos and video, instantly. Incredible. Oh, yes,
and almost forgotten, this small tablet that began
life merely as a phone ... is still one.
Such marvels, though, are doomed to
obsolescence. Like geological strata of soil over
sandstone over rock, techno prototype becomes
leaf mold as it's buried by version 1.0, which
disappears under 2.0, which is overtaken by 3.0,
blanketed by 4.0, soon to have 5.0 cover it like
topsoil, this rich bed then growing 6.0, whose
quick decay grows 7.0, and on and on. And on.
In this world contrived by human minds and
hands, the natural world becomes more than
mere diversion; it serves as soulful elixir.
Nature's seasons remind us of a larger purpose ...
a greater power ... a comforting certainty. Spring's
pale-green leaf wisps spread slowly then sprawl into
summer's deep-green canopy, later lighting the
landscape in pastels for a few precious weeks in
autumn, winter's onset then bringing down the
curtain on another growing season, leaving tree
limbs to stretch, dark and bare, against the sky.
So it has been. So it is. And, thankfully, so it
To advertise in Cooperative Living, contact:
Amanda Cunningham (804) 346-3344
National Advertising Representative: NCM,
611 South Congress Ave., Suite 504,
Austin, Texas 78704 * 800-626-1181
Member of the NCM network of
publications, reaching more than
8 million homes and businesses.
PRESSRUN . . . . . . . . . 521,783
COOPERATIVE LIVING (USPS 473-300) is
published 10 times a year, monthly except for
combined March/April and November/ December
issues, by the Va., Md. & Del. Association of Electric
Cooperatives. POSTMASTER, address changes
should be sent to: Cooperative Living, 4201
Dominion Boulevard, Suite 101, Glen Allen, VA
23060, (804) 346-3344. Periodicals Postage paid at
Glen Allen, VA, and additional mailing offices.
Subscription: $4.99 per year for members of
subscribing co-ops; $10 per year for all others.
ADVERTISING published is accepted on the
premise that the merchandise and services offered
are accurately described and willingly sold to
customers at the advertised price. Neither this
magazine nor the electric cooperatives in Virginia,
Maryland, and Delaware endorses any products or
services advertised herein. If any readers encounter
non-compliance with these standards, they are
asked to inform the Editor.
will be.
Your electric cooperative tries hard to be a
reliable, comforting certainty in your life as well,
by following seven core principles. In October,
cooperatives around the world will celebrate Co-op
Month. We'd like to kick off that celebration early,
by sharing with you a brief description of the seven
principles that guide your cooperative every day.
#1 Voluntary and Open Membership
I know of no more encouraging fact than the
unquestionable ability of man to elevate his life
by a conscious endeavor.
- Henry David Thoreau, 19th-century American writer.
Cooperatives are voluntary organizations, open
to all who are able to use their services and are
willing to accept the responsibilities of being a
member-owner.
#2 Democratic Member Control
As democratic organizations, cooperatives'
member-owners have equal voting rights -
2
A
one member, one vote - and elect a board of
directors to set the policies for their business.
#3 Members' Economic Participation
Gather the gifts of earth with equal hand;
Henceforth ye, too, may share the birthright soil,
The corn, the wine, and all the harvest-home.
- E.C. Stedman, 19th-century American poet.
Members contribute to, and democratically
control, the capital of their cooperative. Any margins
are later returned to the member-owners when the
financial condition of the cooperative permits.
#4 Autonomy and Independence
It is a blessed thing that in every age someone has had
individuality enough and courage enough to stand by his
own convictions.
- Robert G. Ingersoll, 19th-century American writer.
Cooperatives are autonomous, independent
businesses controlled by their member-owners.
#5 Education, Training and Information
Cooperative Living magazine is one example
of your co-op's commitment to keep you informed.
Co-ops also work hard to provide continuing
education for employees and board members,
to keep them up to date on best practices.
#6 Cooperation Among Cooperatives
Swing the shining sickle,
Cut the ripening grain;
Gather in the harvest,
Fall is here again.
- Traditional folk song.
Gathering in the harvest is a collective affair,
as is operating a member-owned business. When
practical, co-ops work with other co-ops, to
minimize costs and maximize effectiveness.
#7 Concern for Community
I believe that man will not merely endure; he will prevail.
He is immortal, not because he alone among creatures
has an inexhaustible voice, but because he has a soul, a
spirit capable of compassion and sacrifice and endurance.
- William Faulkner, 20th-century Nobel Prize-winning
American author.
Cooperative businesses are locally owned and
locally controlled. They work to serve their
members' needs every day. 
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Cooperative Living September 2017

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Cooperative Living September 2017
