I am thrilled and humbled to be stepping into the editor role at Indiana Connection, succeeding the inimitable Emily Schilling. I am grateful to everyone at Indiana Electric Cooperatives for this opportunity, and I’m also extremely nervous. Have you ever felt that way when you started a new role or job? Emily Schilling is someone… Continue reading.

In four short years, Stefanie Lifford has gone from taking calls from individual consumers to now working on the electric distribution side monitoring power flow, troubleshooting outages, and helping keep the lights on for large numbers of consumers at a time. “That was really the big picture for me,” she said. “As a customer contact… Continue reading.

Montgomery County’s seat of Crawfordsville features two historic sites that are now public museums. One fits into its self-proclaimed nickname as the “Athens of Indiana” because of the number of authors who were born or have worked there, and the other revolves around a novel form of incarceration. The General Lew Wallace Study & Museum,… Continue reading.

Every true blue-blooded, gold-torch-carrying Hoosier probably knows the official state bird is the native Northern cardinal. And most Hoosiers could likely recite at least part of the refrain of the state song, “On the Banks of the Wabash, Far Away,” whether they live along the Ohio River, the southern tip of Lake Michigan, or in… Continue reading.

Even if you love the crackle and warmth of a natural-burning wood fire in the hearth, you probably could live without the added cost to your energy bill.  Sure, the flickering flames make you feel warm while you’re sitting nearby, but wood-burning fires actually have negative efficiency. They emit little or no warmth to a… Continue reading.

If some rooms in your house are too cold while others are too hot, you might need more insulation in your attic. Cold air that seeps into your attic doesn’t have to find its way into your living space. Adequate attic insulation, properly installed, can catch it.  If your floor is unusually cold, check the… Continue reading.

Want to save money on your energy bills this winter — without spending a lot to make it happen? Here are 15 low- or no-cost changes you can make: Use your home’s ceiling fans to make the rooms feel warmer. Most people think fans are just for summer, but ceiling fans running slowly in reverse will… Continue reading.

An electric blanket or mattress pad could save you up to 3% on your heating bill — for each degree you lower your thermostat overnight. And you won’t feel cold. But don’t plug in an old electric blanket that you haven’t used in years. Chances are, it’s no longer safe.  Besides, newer models have better… Continue reading.

Thirty-nine years ago, I began a journey that ended up defining my lifetime. Just a couple of years out of college, I was hired to write a history book about rural electrification in Indiana and work on a tabloid newspaper called Electric Consumer. I never would have imagined back then that I would make a… Continue reading.

Since 2009, Indiana Electric Cooperatives has recognized young Hoosiers through the Youth Power and Hope Awards. The awards program — coordinated by the staff of Indiana Connection magazine — honors a select group of middle school students in grades 5 through 8 who are making an impact on their communities. The winners for 2022 were… Continue reading.