More Than Electricity: The Heart of a Cooperative Community
The Holidays are a time of giving and spreading joy. They are also a time of reflection. Many of us pause and recall family gatherings or traditions that evoke a sense of comfort and nostalgia.
Speaking of comfort, living in 2025, it’s impossible to imagine life without electricity. The comfort we feel daily comes from the many modern conveniences we’ve grown accustomed to having. Many of the items we use to improve the quality of our lives are dependent on electricity to work. From the basics, like lights, refrigerators, and TVs, to cell phones, computers, and HVAC, without power, life would indeed be different.
Yellowstone Valley Electric Cooperative was originally established almost 90 years ago to bring electricity to our area when no one else would. This Cooperative reflects our local communities and their evolving needs. Together, we can continue to make our little corner of the world a better place. We do this by being purposeful in partnering with local groups like Family Service, St. Vincent DePaul, and Energy Share for utility and food assistance.
Sponsoring activities like the Chamber of Commerce Ag Celebration Banquet, the NILE Rodeo, and tickets to the Montana Fair for 4-H members. Working closely with our area schools to provide safety demonstrations and award college and trade school scholarships. YVEC also participates in the annual Youth Tour, where we take promising young students to Washington, D.C., for a week-long experience of democracy in action.
Additionally, our Operation Round Up program has provided $595,000 in funding to 95 local community charitable organizations. Ultimately, the larger community benefits from all these programs because of you! You empower YVEC through your membership and through your participation and support.
When you attend co-op events, alert us to outages, provide suggestions to our employees, or simply ensure you are a member in good standing, you help YVEC improve operations and better serve the entire membership. Because we are locally governed by members of our communities, we are able to get a first-hand perspective on priorities, thereby helping us make more informed decisions.
We are also thankful for our co-op Board of Directors, who attend important training sessions, participate in planning meetings, and keep abreast of industry trends. This investment in time results in better-informed advisors who are able to serve the co-op’s business interests in ways that our members expect and deserve. (43689000)
Our community ancestors had incredible foresight to do for others what needed to be done. They gathered friends and neighbors in this beautiful Yellowstone River Valley and formed our Cooperative. We stand on their amazing accomplishments and strive to continue their legacy. We certainly cannot do it without you. We are thankful for your membership.
Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!
Brandon J. Wittman
Chief Executive Officer