“Setting goals is the first step in turning the invisible into the visible.” 

Motivational Speaker Tony Robbins said this perfectly. I often read this quote to keep “visible” where I want Decatur County REMC to be. Every year, we write down our goals, work through them and reflect on what we accomplished. 

Last year, we completed 25 strategic projects that focused on safety, reliability and our members.  

With safety being a top priority at DCREMC, you can bet we took notes from the May 21, 2022, storm. This storm produced winds in excess of 80 mph, creating 50 unique outages with 14 hours and 30 minutes average restoration time. Our team was able to navigate this storm safely. 

Reliability is a key component of our mission statement. We completed $3.59 million in infrastructure improvement projects to enhance reliability for our members on a total utility plant balance sheet of $56 million. We also created our process to get legacy meter poles changed out. 

Other projects in process include items like our fiber feasibility project. We kicked off the feasibility study and validation survey and continue to be engaged in conversations, and we are also working to apply for fiber grants. 

The best part of our member-related goals is being together at engagement events. Last year, we completed 180,102 member contacts along with 17 events. 

I am so excited about what we accomplished in 2022 and am ready for big things in 2023. Our vision will still focus on safety, reliability and our members. After all, that is our mission statement and overall goal. So far, we have 22 projects in progress, including: 

• Maintaining a sustainable and resilient infrastructure system with our right-of-way program. 
• Accelerating our pole replacement program. 
• Applying for grants to help make the fiber project feasible. 
• Planning our 3- to 5-year strategic projects list which will guide our resources and budget for the future. 
• Maintaining a zero-harm work environment by building and promoting an engaged safety culture. 
• Educating our members and community on safety. 
• Maintaining a risk management culture to mitigate business risks. 
• Reducing our IT security and hardware failure risk. 

These goals are just a start, so I can only imagine what will come throughout the year. Our list is ever changing, as we check off and add new items to it. 

As always, my door is open. Please stop in or give me a call. I would love to discuss what you see and what goals we can add to our list — making the invisible, visible!