“It is an extremely positive and rewarding feeling to know that the entire membership now has access to a service that can enhance their quality of life. While it feels great to have accomplished this initial goal, our cooperative is not done. We will continue to provide the critical services of electricity and connectivity to our members for years to come.”

Hunter Robinson, CEO

“A key pillar of the cooperative business model is equal service available to all members. As we started our project in August 2018, 90 percent of our members had no option for reliable, affordable broadband. We made the decision to extend to all accounts, including those who had other options, because everyone deserved to have the same level of service available at the same price.”

Gary Wood, CEO

“Connecting all of our members to the world was the reason our board moved forward on the project in the first place. The ability to connect to education, healthcare, entertainment and more was a clear need, and the cooperative was the only entity trying to ensure every member who wanted to could access high-speed broadband. Knowing that we have completed the build to every member feels amazing! Our cooperative’s purpose is to improve the quality of life for the region we serve, and there’s no other project we’ve undertaken in decades that better delivers on that promise.”

Aaron Bradshaw, CEO

“Our rural area has the same technical and communications needs as urban areas. Our schoolchildren, our health facilities, our farmers and ranchers and small businesses – all need access to high-speed internet. As the digital divide became greater and greater, we felt the need to provide this necessary service to our members – just as we did in the early 1940s when we ‘electrified’ our rural communities. The day we announced that FTTP was available to all locations that serve our members was a proud moment for my team. There was a sigh of relief and yet a moment of awe that we were able to accomplish something of this magnitude in just three years!

Juli Orme, CEO

“When we started our broadband build, we made the commitment to serve our members first. We kept our word, and the result has been compliments and praise from our members who now enjoy the best internet service available. Our members are the only reason for our existence, and we continue to demonstrate every day our desire to provide the best possible service we can.”

Tim Smith, CEO

“Completing the buildout of 3,862 miles of fiber in 36 months shows our vison of building pathways for community success and our mission of delivering services that empower life for every member.”

Randy E. Carroll, CEO

“By offering affordable broadband service while at the same time exceeding the quality and speed of our competitors, every member of the cooperative is able to have access. Once, electricity was a comfort only to cities back in the ’50s; today, broadband is available to rural and out-of-the-way locations. The responses we have received from customers have been nothing but positive.”

Jeff Newman, General Manager

“As a cooperative, we are here to serve our members. No matter where you choose to live in our service territory, we wanted to make sure you have our internet service available. Making a difference in our community is what we are about. It has been very rewarding to hear our members talk about how high-speed internet has changed their lives. It has been amazing to be a part of providing another essential service for our members.”

Kurt Carver, President & CEO

“Witnessing the success of our fiber-to-the-home initiative within our communities has been truly gratifying. The impact on members’ quality of life is immeasurable – from improved healthcare services facilitated by telemedicine to enhanced communication that connects families and friends across distances. This has been a catalyst for community development, and we have Conexon to thank for helping us get to this point.”

Randy Nichols, President and CEO

"Providing a reliable high-speed connection to every member of our cooperative was imperative for our communities to access the same communication services as our urban neighbors. The digital divide became abundantly evident during the pandemic shutdown, as our rural areas lacked the bandwidth for video classrooms and conferences.

"Our MidSouth team stepped up installation during a difficult time on all of us and completed the on-system build ahead of schedule. Meeting such a milestone makes me tremendously proud of the dedication and hard work of our board members and employees."

Kerry Kelton, General Manager/CEO

“From the first meeting, we immediately felt comfortable with the depth of their experience and expertise and ability to help us successfully deliver this service to our members.”

Barry Rowland, General Manager

“Natchez Trace EPA was formed by the members to serve the communities that other companies had left behind. NT Spark had a similar mission. Now all of our members have the same access to the same technology as anyone else around the world. Now, not only are our members no longer left behind, but they are out front! That means so much to me because I grew up in Natchez Trace EPA territory.”

Shawn Edmonson, CEO

“For us, it’s not about getting a return on investment. We want our co-op members to experience the improved quality of life that fiber internet brings. True broadband access helps our students, businesses and communities thrive in today’s competitive world, and we want to be our co-op members’ local source for reliable, affordable internet, TV and phone service."

Mel Coleman, CEO

“Building an entire network from make-ready work to the last lit mainline fiber takes a great deal of hard work and dedication. It is almost like being in storm mode for 28 months. Once you are finished with all zones, the world slows down. It allows you to develop the cadence moving forward to focus on new services, competition, and targeted expansion. Plus, all your members have access to life-changing high-speed connectivity, and they love their cooperative!”

Keith Hayward, CEO

“To be able to reach 100 percent of our members in a much faster time frame than originally planned was huge. The pandemic created massive challenges, not just as an electric cooperative but as a world – where connectivity was equal to electricity in importance since so many lacked the ability to stay connected. OEC, like all other cooperatives in the country, put its members first. By remembering our members were our reason, it ensured our services were offered to all at a time when they needed us most. It’s a great feeling knowing we accomplished this massive initial goal with the help of Conexon and our partners to set us up for success in building OEC as the next 100-year company!”

David Goodspeed, President, OEC Fiber

“Connectivity in our members’ homes and businesses has become a necessity. Our members asked for the service, and we have been able to do it at a very low construction cost. This is consistent with our mission, and it helps our cooperative continue to thrive in difficult economic and demographic conditions. We feel proud of our heightened level of service to our cooperative membership. Beyond electric service, there is nothing more important that we could do for our members. They will appreciate the cooperative even more for a long time into the future.”

Tim Johnson, CEO

"As a co-op, we're committed to ensuring our members and communities have access to all of the societal, education and economic benefits that world-class broadband delivers, backed by our cooperative's commitment to make lives better. Conexon's expertise and support made a tremendous difference in our ability to do that. Randy and Jonathan have been valuable partners and instrumental to our success."

Mitchell Johnson, President and CEO

“When our electric cooperative was formed in the 1930s, it was the biggest in the state. By 2020, our area had lost about 55% of that population. We began looking at ways to remove barriers for residents, to keep them here and even begin growing again. Infrastructure – like good broadband service – is key. Today, we have completed our original FTTH plan, have expanded into areas not covered by our electric service, and have five more expansion projects in the works. We feel very good about the work we have done, and we are not done yet. Our retired CEO Tim Davis put his trust in Jonathan Chambers and Randy Klindt and the information they developed – our membership is very happy that he did.”

Jack Davis, General Manager, PD Fiber

Our co-op leadership strongly believes every Petit Jean Electric member should have the same opportunity to experience world-class broadband internet now and in the future. It feels a bit surreal to know we have accomplished this monumental goal well ahead of schedule, through tireless, dedicated efforts. We feel a tremendous amount of gratitude toward the many hands who made light work of this endeavor as well as an appreciation for the trust our membership bestowed upon us to move forward with such a tremendous undertaking.

Michael Kirkland, CEO

“In March 2017, we intentionally pledged to deliver fiber connectivity to all of our members, a promise we’ve now fulfilled. This initiative has transformed lives across southeast Missouri, enhancing access to education, entertainment, commerce, and health services through our GoSEMO Fiber connection. The dedication of Team SEMO and our Board of Directors has been crucial to this rewarding journey.”

Sean Vanslyke, CEO

“Reaching 100 percent of our members with access to reliable, affordable broadband is important to us because it's important to our members. High-speed internet is no longer a luxury but a necessity. As a cooperative, we are in the business of being responsive to our members’ needs and improving the quality of life in our communities. Completing the project has given us a huge sense of accomplishment (as well as relief), and I am extremely proud of the teamwork that led us here. It feels awesome to hear our members bragging about their lightning-fast internet service.”

Michael McMillan, President and CEO

“Reaching our goal of 100 percent coverage was critical for our membership and cooperative. 100 percent means that every co-op member has access to a world-class, reliable fiber network. The change to our members’ lives was comparable to the lights coming on in the 1940s. Members now have access to telemedicine, work from home opportunities, and online education.”

Chad Lowder, CEO