Who Owns the Cooperative? You Do!

Every October, we celebrate Cooperative Month. And while it gives us a good reason to talk about what makes the cooperative business model different, I think sometimes we make it more complicated than it needs to be.

At FreeState, it really comes down to one question. Who owns the cooperative? You do.

If you receive electric service from FreeState, you aren’t just a customer. You’re a member, and that means you have an ownership stake in this cooperative.

I think that’s something worth celebrating.

There are no outside shareholders at FreeState. The member-elected board of trustees (who are also members) don’t make decisions based on what will generate the greatest return for investors. They make decisions that will make our service more reliable, our employees safer and our communities better.

Our responsibility is right here. It’s a responsibility to the members and communities we serve.

And when you think about it, that’s a pretty unique relationship.

The poles, wires, substations and other infrastructure we all invest in are here to serve you. The margins we earn are reinvested into your cooperative, and when the financial condition of the cooperative allows, capital credits are returned to members. Getting money back these days deserves a celebration!

It all comes back to ownership.

This October, we’re taking that message on the road with our Rallying the Co-op Spirit campaign.

Rather than asking everyone to come to us for one big event, we’re coming to you. We’ll be joining communities across our service territory at area high school sporting events, offering free admission, handing out FreeState rally towels while supplies last, and giving members an opportunity to enter a bill credit drawing. It’s a chance for us to meet you and your family where you are (and cheer on our local kids).

High school sports seemed like a natural fit for Cooperative Month because there are a lot of similarities between a strong community rallying around high school athletics and rallying behind your cooperative.

Neither happens because of one person.

It takes people showing up. It takes teamwork. It takes everyone doing their part. And it takes a little hometown pride.

That’s the same spirit that has built electric cooperatives for generations.

FreeState exists today because people in our communities came together and decided they could accomplish something collectively that would have been difficult to accomplish individually. Nearly 90 years later, that idea is still at the heart of what we do.

Our cooperative has changed a lot over those years, and it will continue to change. Technology changes. Our communities grow. The needs of our members evolve. But one thing doesn’t change: this cooperative belongs to the people we serve.

So, when you see us at a game this October, stop by and say hello. Grab a rally towel. Cheer on your hometown team and celebrate Cooperative Month with us.

Because we’re not just rallying around our schools and communities. We’re rallying around something we all share.

Your cooperative. Who owns it? You do.