Whew! What a whirl wind week it has been! I have worked with various areas and learned about member services, toured the co-ops facilities and an industry member, and ordered my very own pink hard hat! I break down the week day by day…

I have visited almost every substation and have the pictures to prove it! Mike Johnson  (An engineer with EMEMC) and Eddie Stocks (Member and Industrial development) have patiently all of my questions about how all of the lines, substations, and power switches work together!

Monday was spent with Monica as she showed me the ‘ins and outs’ of the co-op office, introduced me to co-op staff, and shared the plan for the summer. I learned copious amounts of information on the history of the co-op, the cooperative difference, and logistics from CEO Winston Howell.

Tuesday morning was a REAP and ACRE meeting.  Monica and I also went on a system tour with Eddie Stocks where we visited about half of the service area. Monica and I decided that we needed cuter hard hats and safety glasses for all of our adventures in the field, and we ordered those on Tuesday. Our monograms will be made them and they’ll be ready for when I return from NCCAT.

Wednesday we visited the landfill to learn about the gas project– I’ll have a separate post on that. We also toured the other half of the service territory to view the substations and infrastructure that the co-op has in place to deliver power to the members. I also got an up-close view of the co-ops new bucket truck that was recently delivered. This bucket truck has the longest reach in their fleet will enable EMEMC to service and repair their tallest lines for maintenance and repair after storms.

Thursday was very exciting as I toured QVC. I was blown away by the logistical technology that they have at the facility. I also got to see their solar equipment ‘up close’ and learn more about the alternative energy initiatives that they have going on.  I’ll have another post about the numerous things I learned there later on. In the afternoon Monica and I toured the remaining substations.

Friday morning I spent some time in member services where I learned how to take payments over the phone and in person at the front desk, I assisted in signing up new members, and learned more about the care that the cooperative takes to make sure that each member is completely satisfied with the service they receive. I also went to a ribbon cutting ceremony and lunch for the Gas Landfill Project I referenced above. The financial partners and community support members were invited to attend and celebrate the new facility.

I knew this week would be overwhelming because of all the new people I’d meet and new knowledge I’d gain. I also knew it would be a lot of fun- for me, learning and trying new things is fun. What I didn’t know was how much I’d learn– I could type in blogs for days and never get it all recorded. This speaks volumes to the fact that experiences can’t be taught with textbooks– the more experiences people have,  the more they learn. I am particularly thankful for these experiences and the people who have supported me this week and will continue to support me through the summer. I look forward to lots of new experiences!

Next week I won’t be at the co-op– I’ll be in Cullowhee, NC for a week at NCCAT with the Kenan Fellows program. I am also excited about the new people I’ll meet and the new experiences I’ll gain from that adventure. Stay tuned for pictures of our white water rafting trip!