October 14, 2009
CONTACT INFORMATION:
Rachel Hawkins
Community Relations Specialist
Piedmont EMC
919.732.2123
Piedmont Electric Joins Other Cooperatives to Flood
Senate Offices with 500,000 Postcards
Hillsborough, N.C., OCTOBER 14, 2009 – With the U.S. Senate poised to begin debate on climate change legislation, six electric cooperative representatives from North Carolina personally delivered more than 10,000 postcards from the state’s electric cooperative consumer-members to North Carolina’s Senators on Capitol Hill.
The North Carolina representatives joined cooperative colleagues from 27 other states across the nation. North Carolina’s electric cooperative representatives urged Senators Hagan and Burr to work with cooperatives to ensure climate change legislation is fair, affordable and achievable.
“We want to make sure our members’ voices are heard,” explains R. G. Brecheisen, CEO of Piedmont Electric Membership Corporation. “The thousands of cards are tangible evidence that cooperative consumers are paying attention and have real concerns about this legislation.”
“The response from cooperative members has been overwhelming,” said Glenn English, CEO of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. “Boxes on top of boxes on top of boxes of signed postcards – that is what a genuine grassroots campaign looks like.”
The postcard campaign is part of Our Energy, Our Future™, a national grassroots effort by rural electric cooperatives to engage consumer-members in a conversation with elected officials about how we meet climate change goals while keeping electricity reliable and affordable.
In all more than a half-a-million postcards, the first wave in an ongoing postcard campaign, were delivered to Senate offices. “It’s important for co-ops to have that kind of ongoing dialogue with their elected leaders,” Mr. Brecheisen said.
Piedmont Electric members and community members have participated in the grassroots efforts in all of its three office locations, Hillsborough, Roxboro and Caswell County, and in community events throughout the service area.
A Touchstone Energy Cooperative headquartered in Hillsborough, Piedmont Electric is a not-for-profit electric utility serving 31,000 consumers in parts of Alamance, Caswell, Durham, Granville, Orange and Person counties.
CUTLINE 1:
Senator Kay Hagan's Energy Legislative Assistant, Perrin Cooke, talks with Chip Leavitt of Brunswick EMC in Shallotte, NC and Brad Furr of Albemarle EMC in Hertford, NC about the thousands of cards sent to Kay Hagan requesting the Senate to consider the impact on consumers when crafting the Energy Bill. The cards were sent in grassroots efforts by members and community citizens from the 27 electric cooperatives throughout North Carolina. More than 900 electric cooperatives throughout the nation presented cards to each State's Senator's office.
CUTLINE 2:
Senator Kay Hagan's Energy Legislative Assistant, Perrin Cooke, discusses the thousands of cards to the Senator with representatives from North Carolina's electric cooperatives. The cards asked that the Senate use care when crafting the Energy Bill. The cards were sent in grassroots efforts by members and community citizens from the 27 electric cooperatives throughout North Carolina. Over 900 electric cooperatives throughout the nation presented cards to each State's Senator's office.
# # #
|
