By Ray Beavers, CEO/General Manager of United Cooperative Services
Taken from March 2008 Co-op Power for United Cooperative Services

There was a song back in my early childhood that is etched into my soul. It keeps coming back to me at different times, and I finally know why. The song was by Peter, Paul and Mary and it is titled “Where Have All the Flowers Gone.” For those of us raised during the ’60s, the song’s lyrics lamented that when something bad occurs, it can have a ripple effect on all of us. Of course, the song was about the Vietnam War and the far-reaching effects of losing a soldier.

However, the song has always evoked a more profound emotion in me—a question, actually. I wanted to know then and I still want to know today—“why?” When we know something needs changing, then why don’t we change it? When something is not working, then why don’t we fix it? When we know that our actions are going to have dire consequences for others, why don’t we tell them? When we know someone is going to be hurt, why don’t we protect them?

We have proclaimed for the last four years that rising electric prices were not only likely, but a certainty. We didn’t know how high they were going to go, or how fast. We still don’t. But we did know that higher prices were going to pinch everyone. We then talked about preparing United to meet the higher prices by being efficient and productive. We knew that being prepared would enhance our organization and its response to the challenges. We also knew our members would look to us for solutions. That’s why we began one of the most aggressive conservation programs in the country. Even though we were convinced conservation would help, we still never lost sight of the fact that high costs were going to hurt those on fixed incomes, or as we call it, “that little old lady on the end of the lines,” the most.

We were right in all respects—especially about the little old lady, because she is now calling us to ask, “what can I do?” Matter of fact, an entire community of them who reside in a senior living community asked us. They first enlisted the help of the property manager, who then called the local newspaper to complain on their behalf about their electric bills. The newspaper ran an incomplete story, never once reporting United had made arrangements with the property manager to conduct an energy audit at each residence, nor United’s effort to meet and hear every resident’s concerns face-to-face the following week.

The same newspaper reporter was invited to attend the community meeting. We were extremely proud of the outcome of that meeting because we were able to demonstrate our sincere interest in our members’ concerns. United’s energy audits proved the complex had areas in need of attention, i.e., significant air infiltration, insufficient attic insulation levels and water heaters that were exposed to ambient  emperatures, and we later conveyed our findings to the newspaper. Since 2003, United has been telling its members that power costs were going up, and that where they wound up would be anyone’s guess. Knowing this, we were determined to help ease our members’ increasing costs through energy conservation. And due to the outcome of the energy audits, and further evaluation of each resident’s units, it was found the residences could be made more energy efficient—thus saving the members’ energy dollars. United was proud to hear the property manager convey her interest in accepting our recommendations and taking action based on those recommendations.

From that meeting, I am more convinced than ever that the decision United made to help its members deal with the rising cost of power through conservation was the right decision. What bothers me is that, as a nation, we know that energy costs are going to affect a lot of households—especially the elderly who are on fixed incomes. To this day, just a few organizations are willing to help do something about it. That has to change and the electric co-ops are the best vehicles to launch these efforts. Hopefully, other utilities will follow. The government needs to have energy efficiency standards that will protect those renting facilities know what their energy costs may be. I’m not saying the government should force the private sector to practice conservation, but I do think that facility owners or managers should be obligated to provide an honest appraisal of property energy costs to prospective renters.

As a nation and as consumers, we all need to wake up to the power we have to make things happen. We do it through our free democracy and we do it through free enterprise and a capitalistic society. The only problem is, we just need to do it and exercise our freedoms. Conservation is just one way we can do that. The song I was talking about has a chorus that really sums up some of the shortcomings we all possess, and that is “when will we ever learn, when will we ever learn.” You think we would by now.

Previous Editions of the Manager's Messages are located in the local pages of Texas Co-op Power.

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