Steuben County REMC members, thank you for your sincere welcome to the community. It’s a privilege to be part of a strong tradition of service rooted in cooperative values and principles. 

Steuben County REMC has been in operation for 89 years, and we will soon be celebrating our 90th anniversary next year. Throughout all these years, our commitment to serving our members has never changed. Our founders established the REMC in accordance with the seven cooperative principles and with the desire to provide our members with affordable, reliable electrical service. This mindset has not changed. We’ve brought those same principles and values to our members today with the addition of broadband. Bring fast, reliable, and affordable fiber internet to a once-underserved area with the same member services that we all expect from your REMC. Broadband is now fully deployed and available to all our members. 

As your cooperative, we stand strong on our values. Through our not-for-profit business model, we focus on offering our members safe, affordable, and reliable electric and broadband services. We stand strong in our commitment to the local communities that we serve. We give back to our community through the seventh cooperative principle — Concern for Community. One great example is our Operation Round Up program. Over the years, we have given over $880,000 to local organizations that help make our area a better place to live.

We are proud to be local. When you call the REMC, you’re talking with your friends and neighbors in the community. We call this the “cooperative difference” — a member-first approach that shapes everything we do. This is what makes us different, and this is why being a member is a great thing. 

Being a cooperative member has benefits. First and foremost, the membership elects the governing board. In alignment with the second cooperative principle — Democratic Member Control — your board of directors is made up of members, just like you. From May 11 through June 11, members will vote for Districts 1, 2, and 9. Our board of directors is responsible for defining and setting the strategic direction for the REMC. This can be particularly challenging, given the ever-changing world we live in today. So cast your votes and know that your governing board is made up of active local members just like you. 

We are a non-profit cooperative, owned by the people we serve. This is the fourth cooperative principle — Autonomy and Independence. That ownership shows up in the decisions we make, the way we invest, and the values we hold. Our goal is not to generate returns for outside investors. It is to provide reliable, affordable electricity and to support the communities we call home.

All of this is part of what makes us different. We are owned by you, and we work for you. That means transparency, long-term thinking, and a strong focus on people. It also means that every dollar you pay goes into the system you own and that serves you.

The spirit and tradition of cooperative values are just as alive today as they were 89 years ago. We, as your REMC, continue to strive forward in living out the “cooperative difference” for the Steuben County REMC Membership that we are proud to serve.