YOUNG HARRIS, Georgia — Blue Ridge Mountain EMC’s Board of Directors and management approved a change to this year’s Annual Meeting to a drive-thru style meeting at the BRMEMC headquarters in Young Harris, Georgia. The Annual Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, Sept. 24 with the business session beginning at 5 p.m. In-person voting will begin at 4 p.m.
Members attending the Annual Meeting will remain in their vehicles at all times. When members arrive they will be directed to drive through the warehouse bay where they will register, pick up gift bags, enter door prizes, and vote if they have not already voted by mail-in ballot or online. Members will then be directed where to park if they choose to stay for the business session. The business session will be broadcast through an AM/FM radio channel that will be announced the day of the meeting. All members who vote, whether it be online, in-person, or by mail will be entered into the door prize drawing. Given the challenges of this Annual Meeting, door prize drawings will be done the following week and all winners contacted directly by EMC personnel to arrange a pick up. Members will not need to be present at the Annual Meeting to collect door prizes.
Three members of the Board of Directors terms expire with the Annual Meeting this year. The Nominating Committee has nominated the following members as candidates: Jeff Ledford (incumbent), Clay County, N.C.; Bert Rogers (incumbent), Towns County, Ga.; Danny Henson (incumbent), Union County, Ga., Agustin Abalo, Union County, Ga., Michael Desparte, Union County, Ga., Jason Hughes, Union County, Ga., and Solomon Patrick, Union County, Ga. There were no nominations made by petition. Candidate bios can be found on the EMC’s website at www.brmemc.com/annualmeeting.
This year is a contested election, and members are encouraged to vote early through mail-in ballots or online at www.directvote.net/brmemc. Ballots will be mailed to members in mid-August and online voting begins Aug. 24 and ends at midnight on Sept. 22. Members whose email the EMC has on file will receive an email on Aug. 24 inviting those members to vote online using their membership number and election passcode. These voting credentials will be in the body of the email and also on the paper ballot that will be mailed to each member. Mailed ballots must be received by Sept. 22 and should not be returned to BRMEMC, but rather members should follow the mailing instructions printed on the ballot. Ranked Choice Voting will be used for tallying votes, and Survey and Ballot Systems will preside over the voting process.
This year marks the 82nd Annual Meeting. General Manager Jeremy Nelms will welcome members, present the executive summary for the 2019 calendar year and share any upcoming news and events.
“This is an unprecedented year and we’re taking many precautions to keep our members and employees safe while hosting a drive-thru style Annual Meeting,” said General Manager Jeremy Nelms. “Many co-ops have already had successful drive-thru or virtual annual meetings. I hope members will appreciate our efforts and participate in their Annual Meeting by voting through mail-in ballots or online.”
For more information on the 2020 Annual Meeting visit brmemc.com/annualmeeting.
About Blue Ridge Mountain EMC
Blue Ridge Mountain Electric Membership Corporation is a member-owned electric cooperative headquartered in Young Harris, Georgia, serving nearly 47,000 members in Cherokee and Clay Counties in Western North Carolina, and Towns, Union and Fannin Counties in Northeast Georgia. Organized locally in 1937, BRMEMC has invested well over $280 million in physical infrastructure in its mission to provide reliable electric and broadband services to its members where those services would not otherwise have been available. Blue Ridge Mountain Electric Membership Corporation is an equal opportunity provider, employer and lender. ###