When Chris Muegge went off to college in 2007, he thought his days working with his dad on the family farm were done. Leveraging his education in animal/feedlot nutrition from Oklahoma State University and then Purdue to come back to his parents’ 1,200-acre grain and livestock farm in southeast Hancock County seemed economically improbable. “I… Continue reading.

With summer just a few weeks away, now’s the perfect time to add new places to your Hoosier bucket lists. Electric Consumer readers have been providing their picks of places to check out since we announced in March that our “Readers’ Choice Awards” would be back. After sharing their favorites in four categories — Best… Continue reading.

The Indiana state flag features a torch with stars beaming out from its flame against a dark blue field. Every summer night, that flag comes alive in the fields and forests of rural and suburban Indiana in the form of fireflies lighting up the dark blue night with their illuminating flickers. How appropriate, then, that… Continue reading.

Anyone who’s ever had cats knows they are creatures of both habit and keen curiosity. Evan Olinger never has had a cat; he and his older brother are allergic to them. Still, the high school sophomore won his fifth consecutive grade division in the Cooperative Calendar of Student Art contest in March by modeling the… Continue reading.

By Holly Huffman “I’ll be straight up,” Sgt. Denver Leverett of the Jeffersonville (Indiana) Police Department admitted. “I got into the business to lock up bad guys.” Fans of the television show “Live PD” can certainly attest that Leverett is adept at getting the so-called “bad guys.” Leverett and his black and tan K9 cohort,… Continue reading.

Political pundits across the country are keeping a close eye on the 2018 Senate race in Indiana, calling the outcome “too close to call” even before we know which Republican candidate will be challenging Democratic incumbent Joe Donnelly for his seat. Who Donnelly, running unopposed in the primary, will face in the November election is… Continue reading.

April 4 marks the 50th anniversary of one of Indiana’s shining moments in the darkness of a national tragedy. On April 4, 1968, Robert Kennedy was campaigning in Indiana for the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination. That evening, he flew to Indianapolis for a planned inner-city rally. Upon landing, he was informed that Martin Luther King,… Continue reading.

The deadline to enter the next contest (to illustrate the 2020 Cooperative Calendar) is March 22, 2019.

Willowy trees with their branches blowing in the breeze are a common theme running through artist Justin Vining’s work. A windswept tree even appears in his logo (above). In a way, it mimics the unpredictable twists and turns and forays back to his roots that his life has swayed. Vining grew up on a farm… Continue reading.

by Brian Christenberry Though Indiana’s electric cooperatives will not have any landmark legislation in play during the short 2018 Indiana General Assembly session now underway, co-ops will continue working to put legislative building blocks in place to bring high-speed broadband to the unserved areas of Indiana. Time is of the essence during the non-budget session… Continue reading.

The weather prognosticators at the trusty Farmers’ Almanac and the U.S. Energy Information Administration agree this winter is shaping up to be a doozy. But just because the snow may fly and the mercury may drop doesn’t mean we Hoosiers have to hibernate till spring. Indiana might not be positioned like Michigan, Wisconsin or Minnesota… Continue reading.

History repeats itself, the old adage contends. It’s certainly true in Gary Gerlach’s case. This month, the Pulaski County farmer will take over the presidential reins of Indiana Electric Cooperatives (IEC), the service association for Indiana’s member-owned electric utilities. He was elected to the post at IEC’s annual meeting Dec. 4, 2017. Gerlach, a director… Continue reading.