SC | co-op news YORK www.yorkelectric.net 1385 E. Alexander Love Hwy. York, SC 29745 1-866-374-1234 MEMBER SERVICES (803) 684-4248 MAIN OFFICE (803) 684-4247 (800) 582-8810 Hours: 8 a.m.–5 p.m. Monday–Friday FORT MILL OFFICE 2089 Hwy. 21 Bypass Fort Mill, SC 29715 (803) 548-4244 Hours: 8 a.m.–12:30 p.m. and 1:30 p.m.–5 p.m. BOARD OF TRUSTEES E. Jack Cornwell Chairman, District 2 Max T. Settlemyre Vice Chairman, District 1 Richard B. Sadler Secretary/Treasurer, District 9 Richard M. Roach, District 3 Paul D. Poston, District 4 Carolyn Hicks Boyd, District 5 William Roy “Will” Mitchell, District 6 Marion Comer, District 7 We’re suspending your annual meeting Tommie Bratton, District 8 PRESIDENT & CHIEF A HEARTY HANDSHAKE. A slap on the shoulder. Maybe even a warm hug. You don’t usually associate these types of behaviors with a business meeting. That is, unless you’re talking about York Electric Cooperative’s Annual Meeting. It’s what makes us different— bringing members, employees, trustees and our community together to engage with one another and participate in the business of their cooperative. Having such an event has always been an important part of serving you and thanking you for your membership. Unfortunately, right now, the very things that make our annual meeting so special create an even greater risk to the communities we serve. York Electric’s 2020 Annual Meeting of Members is suspended to prevent further spreading of the coronavirus. Although unprecedented, this decision by your board of trustees is consistent with York Electric always putting safety fifirst. The trustee election, bylaw changes and cooperative business that needed to be done on May 9 can be accomplished at a time when it’s safer for us to be together again. As you may know, these annual meetings are part of cooperatives’ DNA and are required to happen as written into our bylaws. But a pandemic has no use for bylaws. Statutes and regulations don’t make sense if following them is harmful for the people those rules are meant to protect. For example, YEC has limited personal contact with members, suspended account disconnections, increased social distancing for meetings, and increased employee communications detailing the signs of COVID-19 and guidelines to help prevent spreading germs in the offifice. Although it has not been necessary yet, York Electric may adjust its offifice hours or even temporarily close. We strongly encourage you to visit our website at yorkelectric.net, follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, or just simply call our member services team at (803) 684-4248 to receive the latest information on how our services have changed. In the meantime, we’re doing everything we can to prevent the spread of the virus. Our offifices are routinely cleaned and disinfected. Our employees, especially those who interact with the public, adhere to strict personal hygiene guidelines and have been instructed to stay home if they are feverish or do not feel well. As you practice social distancing or self-isolation, let me remind you of our remote account management services. With YEC’s Member Portal, you can pay your bill, create a payment arrangement, request service orders, or report an outage on your desktop computer or using our mobile app. Our free YEC Mobile App also provides these services, along with our opt-in texting at 352667. If you haven’t already, now is a good time to take advantage of them. Please call us if you need assistance. YEC is always looking out for you, so I remind you all to stay in safe spaces, practice healthy habits and stay informed. We want to help you and our community stay well. PAUL BASHA President and Chief Executive Officer EXECUTIVE OFFICER Paul Basha CO-OP NEWS EDITOR Porter W. Gable FIND US ON 4 SOUTH CAROLINA LIVING | APRIL 2020 | SCLIVING.COOP