Current Matters

Current Matters
August 2011
Vol. 3 Issue 8
Nobles Cooperative
Electric
Committed to improving the quality of life of our members
®
Reading student attends Youth Tour in Washington
Reprinted from Jackie Martin’s Letter to the
Editor in the Worthington Daily Globe.
This year, I was selected along with
35 participants from all over Minnesota to attend the Youth Tour conference
in Washington, D.C. The tour is sponsored by Minnesota’s rural electric
cooperatives and allows students the
opportunity to visit Washington to gain
an appreciation for our nation. My trip
began Saturday, June 11. At 4:30 p.m.,
we arrived in Reagan National Airport.
That night we toured the Franklin
Delano Roosevelt Memorial. Beautiful, flowing fountains and statues
helped to commemorate our nation’s
32nd President and the New Deal program.
On Sunday, June 12, we began the
day by attending a non-denominational
church service at the National Cathedral. The enormity of the cathedral was
apparent. Tall, white halls and beautiful
stained glass windows filled the inside
of the building. After a quick lunch,
we began our tour of the seventh-floor
Newseum. The Newseum is a museum
of past and present news stories. Various photos, papers, and objects are
plastered on the walls throughout. The
museum featured early newspapers—
or Newsbooks, as they were originally
called. It also gave a quick overview
of reporting and various reporters. My
favorite display was the presidents and
their dogs. The display features each
president and gives a quick overview
of their pet. Lyndon B. Johnson’s beagles “Him” and “Her” were among my
favorites.
After the Newseum, we toured the
Lincoln, Vietnam, and World War II
Memorials. The day ended with a picnic by the Potomac River at the Jefferson Memorial.
On Monday, June 13, we attended
the Youth Day General Session in the
morning. At the session were 1,500
youths from 44 states. It was enjoyable to meet the other delegates. After
that, we toured Mount Vernon, George
Washington’s estate. The plantation is
well-preserved and it was exciting to
view Washington’s tomb. Later that
evening, Minnesota delegates, as well
as those from other states, enjoyed a
boat cruise on the Potomac River. The
glittering lights of Washington sparkled from the banks, while the Washington Monument and Capitol building
stood proudly on the shore.
Cont. on page 3
Photo: Jackie (far right) and a group of Minnesota teens enjoy lunch at the Fish
Market in Alexandria, Virginia.
2
Manager’s message
3
Last call for
Operation Round Up
Energy saving tip
Is your washing machine more
than 10 years old? According to
the U.S. Department of Energy,
families can cut related energy
costs by more than a third—and
water costs by more than half—by
purchasing a clothes washer with
an ENERGY STAR label. Choose
a front-load or redesigned top-load
model.
Source: U.S. Department of Energy
Mark your calendar
Sept. 1 ..................... Read your meter
Sept. 5 ................................ Labor Day
Our offices will be closed.
Crews will be on call for outages.
Sept. 12 ................... Electric bills due
Are you exempt from sales tax?
If you use electricity for agricultural or industrial purposes, this reminder will interest you. Electricity
used in this manner may be exempt
from sales tax.
To obtain relief from state sales
tax, file for an exemption with our office. Contact the cooperative or drop
in to complete a ST-3 form.
4
Off-peak programs
saves us all $
Nobles Cooperative
Electric
New Co-op Connections businesses added!
Start saving today!
®
Culligan Water Conditioning
Buy 10 bags of solar salt, receive 1 for free
• 1300 2nd Avenue, Worthington • 507-376-4441
Lende Signs & Graphics
10% off regular priced items
• 280 S. Lake Street, Worthington • 507-372-7200
Mick’s Repair, Worthington
A word from your
General Manager
by Richard ‘Rick’ Burud
Hot! Hot! Hot!
As I write this column, we’ve experienced about five days of very hot
and humid temperatures. After the
heat, you may have a few questions:
• Did we have adequate supply of
power? Yes, we did.
• Did we set a new record peak for
usage? We did, which will result in
higher costs to our members.
• Did we have any major problems?
No. A few transformers failed due
to overloading but nothing abnormal for summer.
• Did our load management system
perform? Yes, very well except for
a computer problem on July 18 at
the end of our control period. (See
the article on page four for a summary on how our load management
programs saved our members money on power supply during peak
periods).
• Are there any residual effects of the
heat? None, however with the high
demands for power, our power supply costs escalate which means the
member will see higher power cost
adjustments (PCAs) on their bills.
2
Free diagnostics with repair
• 405 10th Street, Worthington • 507-376-3095
Your Co-op Connections card can
help you save at local businesses, national retail chains, and on prescriptions from participating pharmacies.
Lost your card? Give us a call at 507372-7331 or e-mail nce@noblesce.com.
Murray County Speedway
$2 off an adult admission ticket
• Murray County Fairgrounds, Slayton
Nobles County Speedway
$1 off grandstand admission
• Nobles County Fairgrounds, Worthington
more
than just
water
is slipping through your fingers
Your home wastes more water than you might realize
and that’s costing you money. The energy it takes to heat
that water is literally washed down the drain, but there is
something you can do to take control of your water usage
and energy costs.
FOR JUST
5
$
Pick up your kit today at
our office!
Automatic meter reading (AMR) meter. This meter can be read remotely and has many other capabilities.
installation continues
Along with our employees hectic We’ve installed about 3,800 meters
summer construction schedule, we’re
also changing every meter on our
system with a new electronic (AMR)
Integrity
so far this year and hope to finish by
the time the first snow flies. Good
news, once installed you won’t need
to read your meter again.
Accountability
Last call for Operation Round
Up funds
The 36 Minnesota Youth Tour delegates experienced the trip of a lifetime. Here they pose
in front of the Iwo Jima statue. Jackie is in the third row, far right.
Cont. from page 1
Youth Tour captures the attention of Minnesota teen
On Tuesday, June 14, my group of
36 began our day by visiting the 9/11
Memorial. The Memorial is placed
along side the Pentagon, and is decorated with beautiful landscaping and
a simple series of benches. Each individual that died on 9/11 is commemorated with a bench bearing their name.
Benches pointing toward the Pentagon commemorate people who died
in the Pentagon. Those pointing away
represent individuals who died on the
plane.
The rest of the morning was spent
touring the Smithsonian Museums.
We visited the American Indian, National Air and Space, Gallery of Art,
and the Natural History Museums. We
ate lunch in the National Museum of
American History. My favorite exhibit in the Museum of National History was a display of the First Lady’s
inauguration gowns. Each gown varied incredibly between Martha Washington’s fluffy blue dress to Michelle
Obama’s white evening gown.
Quickly we walked to the Holocaust Museum and began our threehour tour. At the Holocaust Museum,
we began the tour by selecting an
ID. Each ID was that of a Jew during WWII. As we walked through the
floors, we were allowed to turn various pages of the ID book. At the end,
we learned whether or not our person
survived the Holocaust.
On Wednesday, June 15, my group
of 36 participated in Capitol visits with
our senators and representatives. We
met with Amy Klobuchar, Al Franken,
Tim Walz, Chip Cravaack, and representatives for Michelle Bachmann
and Collin Peterson. We then walked
to the National Archives for a quick
view of the Declaration of Independence, and finished the evening with
a terrific performance of “Wicked” at
the Kennedy Center.
We began our final day, Thursday,
June 16, with a tour of Arlington Cemetary. At Arlington lie the remains of
200,000 American soldiers from the
Revolutionary War to present. My
group witnessed the changing of the
guard at the Tomb of the Unknown
Soldier. After our tour, we returned
to Reagan National Airport and flew
home to Minnesota.
I would like to extend a thank you
to the patrons of Nobles Cooperative
Electric for allowing me to participate
in the trip of a lifetime.
Jackie Martin
The Operation Round Up September 1 deadline is quickly approaching. Apply now for Operation Round
Up funds. Interested organizations
may call the cooperative at 507-3727331, e-mail nce@noblesce.com, or
visit our website at www.noblesce.
coop for an application.
Operation Round Up is made possible through the generosity of our
members. The program began in 2001
as a way to connect locally, giving a
helping hand to organizatons. From a
community perspective, the program’s
contributions have been enormous
providing further educational services,
enhancing job skills, fighting hunger,
and offering hope to many. Since its
inception, the program has distributed
over $150,000 to local non-profit organizations. We would like to thank
each of you for your caring spirit.
For those of you who are not participating in the program, we encourage
you to do so. In recent years, Nobles
Cooperative Electric (NCE) has seen
a drop in members electing to have
their bills rounded up. Please take another look at this beneficial program.
You never know when you may need
a helping hand!
Discover how many lives you can
touch! Call us today at 507-372-7331
or 507-836-6107 to particpate in Operation Round Up.
Commitment to Community Innovation
3
Off-peak programs add up to real savings
Have you ever wondered why we
offer load management or off-peak
programs to our members? The answer lies below.
Those members that allow us to
control air conditioners, water heaters, electric heat, and generators are
saving NCE money, which in turn
translates to savings for you. Just for
one day in June, your cooperative
was able to shed over 5,000 kW and
save $106,300 in power costs. Join
other off-peak members who help
us control costs. Give us a call today
and see what you can do to help!
Members who voluntarily allow
the cooperative to turn off certain
appliances during times of peak electric demand save NCE money on its
wholesale power bill. In turn, members that participate in the programs
receive incentives for participating.
The graph below explains how
off-peak programs help us shed load.
The blue area shows the actual usage we saw on June 7. While the red
shows the anticipated load that would
have occurred if we had not utilized
the load management programs.
The cooperative has load management/off-peak programs that fit
the usage and facilities of nearly
any home or business. Contact us at
507-372-7331 or by e-mail (nce@
noblesce.com) for detailed information about how you can help manage
demand by participating in load management.
June 7, 2011
5,000 kW controlled
$106,300 in power costs saved
Anticipated
Official monthly publication
Main office
22636 U.S. Hwy. 59, P.O. Box 788
Worthington, MN 56187-0788
Phone: 507-372-7331
Fax: 507-372-5148
Satellite office
1505 20th Street, P.O. Box 56
Slayton, MN 56172-0056
Phone: 507-836-6107
Website
www.noblesce.coop
Load Control
Period
Actual Usage
on System
E-mail address
nce@noblesce.com
Office hours
8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Monday through Friday
24-Hour outage service
800-776-0517
kW
Gopher State One-Call
800-252-1166
WildBlue tech support
Country Cupboard
Grilled fish
Marlowe Nelsen
Westbrook
2 lbs. flounder or sole fillets
3 T. mayonnaise
2 T. lemon juice
3 T. chopped green onions
1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 c. butter or margarine, melted
Coat a piece of heavy-duty foil (about 14 in. x 14 in.) with nonstick cooking spray.
Place fillets on foil; brush with lemon juice. Crimp foil, forming edges. Place foil flat
on the grill (do not seal). Grill, covered, over medium-hot heat for 4 minutes. Combine
Parmesan cheese, butter, mayonnaise, onions and salt; brush over fillets. Grill 3 to 4
minutes longer or until fish flakes easily with fork. I use this recipe on walleye, northern, or any white fish I have.
Send your favorite salad recipe to Nobles Cooperative Electric, Attn: Tracey, P.O. Box
788, Worthington, MN 56187-0788. Entries must include your name, address, telephone
number, and NCE’s location number. All entries must be received by August 15. The winning recipe will be featured in the next edition of Current Matters and the winner will
receive a $10 credit on their electric bill.
888-326-4289
Electrical inspectors
Murray County
Randal Maha - 507-274-5261
Nobles County
Scott Preuss - 507-449-8870
General Manager
Richard G. Burud
Board of Directors
Ronald Schwartau, President - 734-3052
Richard Greve, V. President - 376-5026
Lee York, Sec./Treas. - 879-3497
David Clarke, Director - 425-2646
Henry Hanson, Director - 483-2417
Dick Ruiter, Director - 443-5891
Gary Sieve, Director - 926-5455