District 1
Employment / Education / Other Experience:
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- I have over 40 years of experience in residential, commercial, and industrial electrical systems, backed by an Electrical Engineering degree that offers a unique skillset.
- Industrial Electrician at Tecumseh, Marion Power Shovel, and Honda.
- Focused on budgets, plant startups, equipment reliability, training, and maintenance systems across US plants in my 34-year Honda career as a Maintenance/Equipment Engineer.
- Currently I instruct an Electrical Controls class at Honda and previously developed and taught Programmable Controls at Tri-Rivers Career Center.
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What, in your opinion, are the greatest challenges facing the cooperative in the next three to five years? There are several challenges that URE must proactively address to maintain clean, reliable and affordable energy for its Members. URE must address Members’ needs whether they are residential customers, farmers, or businesses. Engaging all members is crucial to offer programs and services that benefit them. URE must continue to maintain, upgrade and innovate aging infrastructure for distributed generation to modernize the grid for future demands such as electric vehicles. URE must also implement ongoing measures to detect and eliminate Cybersecurity threats.
Why are you interested in becoming a member of the URE Board of Trustees or serving another term? I’m eager to apply my electrical technology expertise to directly benefit URE and its Members. All Members deserve a reliable, affordable source of power in their daily jobs and life. I bring the customer perspective and technical expertise to ensure URE’s success and that Members’ needs are met. I look forward to supporting URE and its members as District 1 Trustee.
Steve Patton | 32593 Winnemac Road, Richwood
Employment / Education / Other Experience:
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- Retired- 43 years, Parrott Implement Co. John Deere, Parts and Service Manager
- Active Farmer
- Holder of NRECA CCD, BLC, and Director Gold Accreditations
- Clark County Technical College – Ag business
- North Union Graduate
- URE Board since 2012- Chairman past six years
- Statewide Ohio Electric Cooperative board member
- Jackson Township and Northern Fire and EMS Trustee
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What, in your opinion, are the greatest challenges facing the cooperative in the next three to five years? Managing growth & energy security. Union county & central Ohio face critical demands for energy in the near future. Energy security was a term we never worried about. Today we face some uncomfortable facts that electric could be unavailable at critical times. Political, environmental and regulatory issues of electric generation and transmission will continue to affect us all. We need all sources of electric generation. I approve of a commonsense approach to the timing and amount. Above all, it must be reliable & affordable for everyone.
Why are you interested in becoming a member of the URE Board of Trustees or serving another term? NRECA’S continuing education program has elevated trustees to the peak of Cooperative culture and fiduciary duty. Be confident if re-elected that I will use the experience and knowledge acquired to promote safety, reliability, and affordability for our members. It has been an honor to serve a grass roots organization like URE. I would deeply appreciate serving you for another term.
District 4
Clifford A. Collins| 20430 Dog Leg Road, Marysville
Employment / Education / Other Experience:
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- Program Risk Manager / Ohio Benefits Program, State of Ohio
- Enterprise Risk & Cybersecurity Manager / Franklin University
- Electrical Engineer in Research & Development / AMF Bowling Products
- Lieutenant, Emergency Operations Center / Union County EMA
- Bachelor of Arts, The Ohio State University
- Masters of Business Administration, Franklin University
- President, Central Ohio Chapter of InfraGard (Cyber-partnership with the FBI)
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What, in your opinion, are the greatest challenges facing the cooperative in the next three to five years? I believe URE faces four big challenges over the next five years: 1) maintaining reliable services at a price that its members can afford, 2) hardening its infrastructure to cope with natural disasters (weather and CMEs) as well as man-made disasters (terrorism, cyberattacks and EMPs), 3) responsibly expanding its infrastructure ahead of the county’s planned growth, and 4) retaining the excellent staff it has acquired over the years.
Why are you interested in becoming a member of the URE Board of Trustees or serving another term? I have reached a point in my life where I have the time and the desire to assist our Cooperative in meeting its current and upcoming challenges head on, using my decades of work experience in both the public and the private sectors. I would also find it an honor to serve the members in my district and throughout the four counties that URE serves. My goal is to be available to the members to discuss any issues and to be transparent about all of our challenges and opportunities.
Russell Kurtz | 22193 Herd Mcilroy Road, Raymond
Employment / Education / Other Experience:
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- Senior Market Director for Lucid Hearing overseeing operations in OH/WI/MN.
- Owner of Fancy Farm Wife Mercantile, Raymond OH, specializing in Highland cattle and Berkshire pigs.
- Retail executive for 20+ years between Wal mart Stores, Inc. & Kmart Corp.
- Former Program Director for WPKO/WBLL Bellefontaine.
- Business Degree University of Phoenix
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What, in your opinion, are the greatest challenges facing the cooperative in the next three to five years? As our community continues to grow in both residential and industrial capacity, URE must continue to plan to ensure reliable, yet affordable services to all members. Keeping our member needs centric to any decision will be critical while innovation will assist us in meeting new demands not yet known. Personnel needs will require our line crews continue to have the education and reliable equipment needed to meet unforeseen challenges while also reaching out to educate local youth about possible career opportunities.
Why are you interested in becoming a member of the URE Board of Trustees or serving another term? The URE Board of Trustees is a valuable resource bridging our Membership with URE management. As a small business owner who has also worked within corporate structures, one thing has always driven results. Taking the varied opinions of people from different aspects of an organization and finding the solutions that work to benefit the entire organization. My professional success has always centered around listening to others and learning from those before me. As a member of URE, father and grandfather of children in Union County, I would be honored to serve as your Board Member.
Ronald Mitchum | 24956 Patrick Brush Run Rd, Marysville
Employment / Education / Other Experience:
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- Retired Union County Business Owner and Rancher
- 23-year Union County Environmental Laboratory Owner
- Careers with Battelle, US EPA, and FDA
- Published author (science writer)
- Doctorate Chemistry –Oklahoma State University
- Advanced studies-Universities Houston, Warwick, and Nebraska
- Three-term ACS Section Chair
- Marysville Church of Christ Member
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What, in your opinion, are the greatest challenges facing the cooperative in the next three to five years? The rural electric corporative today is not the one of our grandfathers. Today URE is faced with increasing costs of government regulations and inflation affecting the ability of URE to supply cost-effective energy to your home and business. Managing the future through legislative awareness and ensuring cost-effective operation will be my focus on the board. Managing distribution efficiency and workforce recruitment, training, safety, and employee retention will allow URE to continue as a premier power provider.
Why are you interested in becoming a member of the URE Board of Trustees or serving another term? Your vote is important! I have been a member for 23 years and have relied on URE Energy to make my business successful. Membership on the Board of Trustees is my commitment to the members and the future of URE Rural Energy. As a physical scientist, I understand the aspects of power generation, environmental compliance, and climate mandates. I will work to ensure that URE can meet the future demands of our members. It would be an honor and privilege to serve as the Region 4 URE Board Trustee.
Harold Watters | 24600 Storms Road, Raymond
Employment / Education / Other Experience:
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- Farmer and Consulting Agronomist
- Emeritus Associate Professor, The Ohio State University
- past employment: OSU Extension Field Specialist Agronomic Systems,
- Agronomic Systems Manager Monsanto Corp and Field Biologist BASF Corp.
- MS Agronomy from The Ohio State University
- BS Natural Resources from The Ohio State University
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What, in your opinion, are the greatest challenges facing the cooperative in the next three to five years? 1) Customer service will continue to be a challenge, as we will need more systems to connect our houses, farms, communities, and businesses. Since we have poles set to serve every home and business in the territory we should consider adding other services. 2) Weather extremes also are likely to impact service. 3) Renewable energy is already a consideration and concern. The co-op needs to consider whether to invest in renewables, to encourage business and homeowners to invest, or to withdraw.
Why are you interested in becoming a member of the URE Board of Trustees or serving another term? As a 40 plus year customer, I have certainly seen the improvements made to our service. I appreciate the reliability of the system and the capability of UREC to deliver service. UREC needs to continue that great tradition. I wish to serve to make sure the co-op recognizes future opportunities and takes advantage of them. I retired in 2022 from The Ohio State University after 20 plus years of service there. I served on over a dozen committees, chairing some and an active participant in all, and know the work it takes to deliver good decisions to progress into the future. It involves asking customers their needs, evaluating possibilities, making compromises, and coming to a consensus to deliver client needs while also maintaining a sustainable business. As a farmer and practicing agronomist, I also know of the needs of agriculture – the value of information increases daily, I think UREC can be part of the solution.
Christopher Wright | 17430 Martin Welch Road, Marysville
Employment / Education / Other Experience:
I have worked in Digital Media and Information Systems for the last 20 years. I have a Bachelor’s degree in fine arts and an Associates Degree in interactive media. My present work experience is as a lead developer in integration technologies at a fortune 500 company. I have a wide variety of work experience in internet and emerging technologies.
What, in your opinion, are the greatest challenges facing the cooperative in the next three to five years? I think the energy sector will have a lot of interesting challenges and opportunities over the next few years. First of all at least in Union county we are seeing a huge amount of growth in people moving to the area which will mean increasing electricity demand. I anticipate within 5 years we’ll have more and more electric powered vehicles which will mean more folks charging at home or wanting charging stations available, the flip side is there will probably be more landowners and homeowners interested in solar panel installations. That last piece that could be an opportunity is taking advantage of federal legislation passed to incentivize electrification and green energy. All this adds up to a lot of potential changes over 5 years.
Why are you interested in becoming a member of the URE Board of Trustees or serving another term? I took an interest in serving simply because I have been a very happy member of the Union Rural Electric Cooperative. I decided to raise my hand to volunteer because I think the Coop has done excellent work providing great rates to their customers and improving service. When covid hit I was so impressed with the temporary rate reductions they provided for members to help, this is not something the other profit driven power companies extended to their customers. How I hope I can help is by sharing my expertise in IT and internet technologies. I’ve lived in the county for about 7 years with my wife and two children and am hoping to give back to the community we plan to stay in. Thanks!
District 5
Dan Westlake | 17183 Mackan Road, Marysville
Employment / Education / Other Experience:
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- Auctioneer/Westlake Livestock and Marketing
- Personal Property Appraiser
- 6 Term Dover Township Trustee
- Farmer and Agribusinessman
- Ohio Township Trustee Leadership Academy
- Completed Credential Cooperative Director, Board Leadership, and Director Gold Programs from NRECA
- Associate Degree
- Care Train of Union County
- 4 Term URE Board of Trustees
- Route 33 Corridor Committee
- Union County Farm Bureau, Past President
- Ohio Delegate National Association of Towns & Townships Conference
- Extension Advisory Board Union County
- District Advisory Health Department Committee, Past President
- Farm Service Agency Committee
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What, in your opinion, are the greatest challenges facing the cooperative in the next three to five years? Our cooperative will continue to face significant challenges amidst the backdrop of inevitable change, growth, and technological advancements. Our effort allows us to navigate towards beneficial electrification while aligning with core values of load growth, member value, embracing new technology, and maintaining our role as a trusted energy advisor. Proactively addressing these challenges positions us for long-term success, delivering reliable and sustainable energy solutions to our members.
Why are you interested in becoming a member of the URE Board of Trustees or serving another term? I seek your trust and support for another term on the URE Board of Trustees. As we progress into 2024 and beyond, our cooperative remains committed to enhancing operational efficiency, safety, reliability, and environmental sustainability. Collaboration among board members fosters synergy, solves challenges, and drives innovative solutions. This collaborative spirit and dedication to serving our community motivates me to seek another term, contributing to our efforts in shaping a brighter future for URE and its members.