Log in | Register |
StormCenter logo

Archive

Tag: Rainbow Lakes

Members Re-elect District 7 Trustee Rob Henion

On Tuesday, January 23, members who attended the District Meeting voted to re-elect Rob Henion to represent District 7 on SECO Energy’s Board of Trustees. Henion became a SECO member in 2002 and was first elected to the Board in 2009. Henion currently serves in an Officer position as Secretary-Treasurer.

 

SECO Energy is a not-for-profit electric cooperative, operated for and owned by its members. SECO members elect their fellow members to SECO’s nine-member Board of Trustees. Collectively, the Board represents the SECO membership, meeting monthly to monitor the financial status of the cooperative while providing fiduciary oversight and participating in policy decisions that serve the best interests of the members at large.

 

Members in District 7 gathered at the Rainbow Lake Estates Community Center in Dunnellon to elect a District 7 Trustee for a three-year term. Henion and Dunnellon resident Carmen A. Pintado-Kusiak along with Ocala resident Donald R. Stanton expressed a willingness to represent the members of District 7. In January, all three submitted their letter of intent to serve.

 

Henion stated, “Thank you District 7 members for once again selecting me to represent District 7 on SECO’s Board of Trustees. I am privileged to continue my work with the cooperative, CEO Jim Duncan, SECO’s senior management team and my fellow Trustees.”

 

CEO Jim Duncan stated, “I congratulate Mr. Henion on his re-election and continued service to SECO members. It is a pleasure to work with a Board that is member-focused and committed to the Cooperative’s success. I also extend my gratitude to our District 7 members who attended the meeting and participated in SECO’s democratic process.”

 

Duncan added, “I hope to see all of you at SECO’s Annual Meeting of the Membership in March. Enjoy breakfast and snacks, browse energy efficiency displays at the Energy Showcase and stay through the business meeting for the door prize drawing. This year, door prizes include a refurbished 2009 Chevy Colorado pick-up truck an electric golf cart, cash and more.”

SECO members are invited to the 80th Annual Meeting of the Membership on Saturday, March 24. Registration opens at 8:00 a.m., and the business meeting begins at 10:30 a.m. The meeting is located across the street from the corporate headquarters at 293 S. Highway 301 in Sumterville.

 

Visit SECOEnergy.com>YourCo-Op for photos and brief bios of the Trustees along with an interactive District map. “Like” SECO’s Facebook page and “follow” @SECOEnergy on Twitter for news releases and cooperative updates.

SECO Employees Aid in Power Restoration for Clay Electric Members

Late Tuesday night into early Wednesday morning, a strong line of thunderstorms swept into SECO Energy territory. Heavy rains soaked the area causing downed trees, poles and electric lines.

 

Central Florida has been the target of powerful winter thunderstorms this year, and SECO’s system continues to fare very well. This stability is attributed to solid design, quality construction, consistent maintenance and balanced vegetation management protocol.

 

At the height of the storms, almost 4,000 SECO members in Marion and Levy Counties experienced a service interruption when a Duke Energy transmission line failed. A second large-scale outage occurred when a tree fell into a line, affecting the Westwood Acres and Rainbow Lakes communities. SECO Operations employees were immediately dispatched to the affected area and worked throughout the night. Service was restored to all members by 5:30 a.m. Wednesday.

 

Clay Electric Cooperative’s members were affected by widespread outages due to the strong late night storms and asked SECO for aid. SECO was fortunate to have recovered quickly from the storm and was more than willing to lend a hand to a fellow electric cooperative. The SECO Operations team jumped into action. In just over an hour, the cooperative sent 20 of SECO’s employees to help restore power and also sent released 11 of its contracted line crews to Clay’s service area that afternoon.

 
Crews travel to Clay Electric

John LaSelva, Vice President of Operations, stated, “SECO is always willing to assist our neighbors when possible. We have answered the call to assist fellow cooperatives, investor-owned utilities and municipalities, and understand our duty to render aid when needed. SECO’s efforts to storm harden its system continue to pay off. A well-designed system that includes comprehensive vegetation management is key to not only preventing outages but is paramount to restoring outages quickly and safely when they occur.”

 

LaSelva added, “The most important consideration is the energy consumer. Power is necessary for SECO members, and all consumers for that matter, to maintain their quality of life. SECO supports cooperation among cooperatives and stands Storm Ready when weather conditions turn volatile in The Sunshine State.”

 

Learn more about preparing your family’s emergency kit online. Bookmark SECO’s Storm Center so you can quickly report an outage using just your last name and house number. Establish a SmartHub account or download the app to update your phone number. “Like” SECO’s Facebook page and “follow” @SECOEnergy on Twitter for news releases and cooperative updates.