NHEC Board Appoints Two New Members by NHEC | Aug 1, 2024 | Board of Directors, UncategorizedPLYMOUTH, NH – The New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC) Board of Directors has appointed new members to fill two vacancies on the 11-member board. Peter Laufenberg of Thornton and John Goodrich of Littleton were selected by the board to finish the terms of two former members, Sharon Davis of Campton and Madeline McElaney of Plymouth, who recently resigned in June. Laufenberg was one of nine candidates running for election to the board this year finishing sixth in voting. Only the top four who received votes from Co-op members were elected to the board of the nonprofit cooperative. Goodrich previously ran for election to the board in 2022 and participated in the Nominating Committee this past election. “We are delighted to have recruited two highly qualified individuals to serve as Board members who have demonstrated a strong commitment to the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative and its members,” said NHEC Board Chair William Darcy. Following the appointment of Laufenberg and Goodrich, the NHEC Board also announced its slate of officers: William Darcy – Chair Alana Albee – Vice Chair Jeffrey Morrill – Secretary Jerry Stringham – Treasurer Thomas Mongeon – Assistant Treasurer For more information about the Board of Directors, visit the board’s page at nhec.com.
Four Members Elected to NHEC Board of Directors by NHEC | Jun 18, 2024 | Annual Meeting, Board of Directors, UncategorizedPLYMOUTH, NH – Members of New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC) elected four members to the company’s board of directors. Jeffrey Morrill of Holderness, Patricia Barbour of Lee, Leo Dwyer of Sandwich and Jerry Stringham of North Woodstock received the most votes and will serve three-year terms. Nine candidates ran to fill four seats on the 11-member board of directors. Voters rejected a proposed amendment to the NHEC Code of Bylaws after it failed to reach the required supermajority approval of 66% of the votes cast. Election results were announced at NHEC’s 85th Annual Meeting, held June 18 at Owl’s Nest Resort in Thornton. As a member-owned cooperative, NHEC relies on the active participation of its members to govern and sustain the business. NHEC wishes to thank all members who voted or stood for election. Below are the full results of the 2024 Board of Directors Election. FOR THREE-YEAR TERM (*elected) *Jeffrey Morrill 3,757 *Patricia Barbour 3,701 *Leo Dwyer 3,175 *Jerry Stringham 2,968 Paul Bolduc 2,892 Peter Laufenberg 2,608 Brenda Boisvert 2,521 Brian Norton 1,885 James Krull 1,661 BYLAW AMENDMENT (requires two-thirds majority for passage) NO 3,450 (53.4%) YES 3,012 (46.6%)
Voting Opens May 21 in NH Electric Co-op Board Election by NHEC | May 17, 2024 | Board of Directors, UncategorizedPLYMOUTH – Members of New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC) will be voting to fill four seats on the 11-member Board of Directors when the election opens on May 21. A field of nine candidates is running for those four seats. Six of the candidates were nominated by the NHEC Nominating Committee, an independent body that reviews the qualifications of each candidate and recommends those it believes would best contribute to the successful operation of NHEC. Three candidates who were not nominated by the committee are running by petition, which required them to gather the signatures of a minimum of 100 NHEC members. Candidates nominated by the committee seeking election to three-year terms are: Patricia Barbour of Lee Paul Bolduc of Bartlett James Krull of Plymouth Peter Laufenberg of Thornton Jeffrey Morrill of Holderness Brian Norton of Campton. Those candidates who submitted petitions with the required signatures to run for the board are: Brenda Boisvert of Campton Leo Dwyer of Sandwich Jerry Stringham of North Woodstock Members will also be asked to decide on a proposed amendment to the NHEC Code of Bylaws. The proposed amendment, which was submitted by petition and is not supported by the Board of Directors, seeks to expand the Board’s powers of access to Cooperative working documents. NHEC members are receiving written statements from the candidates in support of their candidacies, along with a ballot and a postage-paid return envelope. To save time, money and resources, NHEC encourages all members to vote securely online instead of returning a paper ballot. Each ballot mailing will include instructions for voting quickly and securely online. NHEC members have until Wednesday, June 12, 2024, to return their completed paper ballot or cast their electronic ballot. Election results will be announced at the 85th Annual Meeting of Members, to be held Tuesday, June 18 at 5:30 p.m. at Owl’s Nest Resort in Thornton. Members can also attend the Annual Meeting online. To register to attend in-person or online, please visit: https://www.nhec.com/event/2024-annual-meeting-of-members/. All NHEC members are welcome to attend. Resort activities such as tennis, pickleball, paddle boarding, golf and more are free or discounted for NHEC members from noon to 5 p.m. on the day of the meeting. Childcare and overnight accommodations are also available.
NHEC Sets Deadline for Candidates Seeking Nomination to Board of Directors by NHEC | Jan 24, 2024 | Board of Directors, UncategorizedPLYMOUTH – Members of the New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC) interested in being considered for nomination to the NHEC Board of Directors should submit their candidate material to the NHEC Nominating Committee by noon on February 16, 2024. Any NHEC member in good standing can run for a seat on the board. NHEC members vote annually to fill open seats on the board. To learn more about the director election process, please visit https://www.nhec.com/board-of-directors/director-election-process/. To apply, please contact Maida Lessard (lessardm@nhec.com) for a candidate packet. “This is an exciting time to be involved with NHEC,” said President/CEO Alyssa Clemsen Roberts. “At a time of great change in the way energy and information is shared, and our expansion into broadband, our board and employees are embracing new ways to support the lives of our member-owners. It’s an important and rewarding job.” This year, four of the 11 board seats are up for election to three-year terms. Election ballots are mailed to all members in May. Winners will be seated at the Annual Meeting of Members in June. The NHEC Nominating Committee meets each year to review applications and interview candidates for the board of directors. Committee members consider the needs of the cooperative and nominate a slate of candidates they feel can best meet those needs. The candidates selected will be identified on the ballot as having been nominated by the nominating committee. NHEC is a member-owned electric distribution cooperative serving 86,000 homes and businesses in 118 New Hampshire communities.
Members Reelect Four Incumbents to NHEC Board of Directors by NHEC | Jun 8, 2023 | Annual Meeting, Board of Directors, UncategorizedPLYMOUTH, NH – Members of New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC) have returned four incumbents to the company’s board of directors. A total of seven candidates were running to fill four seats on the 11-member board of directors. Five candidates ran for election to three, 3-year terms on the Board, while two candidates ran for election to one, 1-year term. Election results were announced at NHEC’s Annual Meeting, held June 7 in Plymouth. Reelected to three-year terms on the board were William Darcy of Benton, Madeline McElaney of Plymouth and Harry Viens of Center Harbor. Reelected to a one-year term on the board was incumbent member Leo Dwyer of Sandwich. Additionally, NHEC members approved one proposed amendment to the NHEC Code of Bylaws, but a second proposed amendment failed to reach the required supermajority approval of 66% of the votes cast. The first proposed amendment gives the board additional flexibility to efficiently receive, process and count NHEC membership votes that are cast electronically. The second proposed amendment would have eliminated the use of gendered language when referring to individuals in the bylaws. As a member-owned cooperative, NHEC relies on the active participation of its members to govern and sustain the business. NHEC wishes to thank all members who voted or stood for election. Below are the full results of the 2023 Board of Directors Election. FOR THREE-YEAR TERM (*elected) *William Darcy 4,478 *Madeline McElaney 4,270 *Harry Viens 3,712 Patricia Barbour 3,266 John Simonelli 2,953 FOR ONE-YEAR TERM (*elected) *Leo Dwyer 4,439 Leon (Lee) Pierhal 2,392 BYLAW AMENDMENT #1 (requires two-thirds majority for passage) YES 5,373 (77.9%) NO 1,521 (22.1%) BYLAW AMENDMENT #2 (requires two-thirds majority for passage) YES 4,017 (57.9%) NO 2,924 (42.1%) At NHEC’s Board Organizational Meeting on June 7, 2023 the Board of Directors elected the following officers to serve one-year terms: Chair of the Board – Sharon Davis Vice Chair of the Board – Madeline McElaney Treasurer – Edward French Assistant Treasurer – Carolyn Kedersha Secretary – Brenda Boisvert
Voting Opens in 2023 Board of Directors Election by NHEC | May 3, 2023 | Board of Directors, UncategorizedPLYMOUTH, NH – Voting is underway in the 2023 New Hampshire Electric Cooperative (NHEC) Board of Directors election. Self-governance and the democratic election of directors by the members they serve are hallmarks of the cooperative business model. NHEC members are again voting to elect their representatives at the highest level of the company. This year, seven candidates are running to fill four seats on the 11-member board of directors. Five candidates are running for election to three, 3-year terms on the Board, while two candidates are running for election to one, 1-year term. Five candidates have been nominated by the NHEC Nominating Committee, an independent panel of members that reviews the qualifications of each candidate and recommends those it believes would best contribute to the successful operation of NHEC. Two candidates are running by petition, which required them to gather the signatures of a minimum of 100 NHEC members in support of their candidacies. Seeking election to three-year terms are nominated candidates Patricia Barbour of Lee, Madeline McElaney of Plymouth, John Simonelli of Epping and Harry Viens of Center Harbor. Running by petition for the three-year term is William Darcy of Benton. Seeking election to the one-year term is nominated candidate Leon “Lee” Pierhal of Wentworth, and Leo Dwyer of Sandwich, who is running by petition. NHEC members will also decide two proposed amendments to the NHEC Code of Bylaws. Both were proposed and supported by the NHEC Board of Directors. The first proposed amendment would give the board additional flexibility to efficiently receive, process and count NHEC membership votes that are cast electronically. The second would eliminate the use of gendered language in the bylaws when referring to individuals. NHEC members are receiving written statements from the candidates in support of their candidacies, along with a ballot. To save time, money and resources, NHEC encourages all members to vote securely online instead of returning a paper ballot. Each ballot mailing will include instructions for voting quickly and securely online. NHEC members have until Thursday, June 1, 2023 to return their completed paper ballot or cast their electronic ballot. Election results will be announced at the 84th Annual Meeting of Members, to be held Wednesday, June 7 at 10 a.m. at the Merrill Place Conference Center on the campus of Plymouth State University. Members can also attend the Annual Meeting online. To register to attend online, please visit https://www.nhec.com/2023-annual-meeting. All NHEC members are welcome to attend.