In this month’s issue of The GVEC Review, we’ll look back on our Annual Meeting held in June. In the years to come, I suspect I’ll look back on this year’s Meeting with a sense of pride in how the Cooperative navigated one of the most difficult chapters in its history. This is because it was a symbol of how GVEC withstood a year of unprecedented obstacles after having to postpone our 2020 Meeting due to COVID-19.
The decision to postpone last year’s Meeting was a difficult one and not made lightly. Little did we know at that time, the postponement would be a full year. Although we still published the 2019 Annual Report in the June issue of The GVEC Review for members to read, it was disappointing we couldn’t meet in person. Sometimes you don’t realize how much you truly appreciate gathering together until you aren’t able to do so.
So, with grateful hearts and a full agenda, the 2021 Annual Meeting was one for the books. In addition to the election of our 2021 Director-Candidates for Districts 3, 9 and 11, members elected a new Director to the Board when Candidate Leo York won the contested District 6 election. I look forward to working with Mr. York and would like to welcome him to our Board. I’d also like to express my sincere thanks to Joe Castilleja, who well represented District 6 since 2017. His dedication to serving GVEC and its members has been a great asset to the Cooperative, and it was my honor to work with him over the last four years.
We voted on the 2020 Director-Candidates for 2, 5 and 8 as well. All three of these 2020 incumbents ran unopposed and had remained in their positions from 2020-2021. Consequently, each Director will serve two more years before standing for reelection in 2023.
Of course we also resumed other traditional favorite festivities of the Meeting: hot dogs, door prizes and recognizing those making a difference in our communities by presenting GVEC Public Service Awards to two very deserving organizations: Gonzales Healthcare Systems and Guadalupe Regional Medical Center.
As we looked back on 2020 in the pages of the Annual Report and watched the Annual Video, we were reminded just how essential the services GVEC delivers are to the people and communities we serve. We recalled that even a worldwide pandemic wasn’t stronger than the hearts of the service-minded men and women who make up the GVEC team and their commitment to our members and customers.
If you weren’t able to attend our 2021 GVEC Annual Meeting, you can check out a full recap of the event on pages 20 and 21 of The GVEC Review and view the Annual Meeting video at gvec.org/annual-meeting.
I am always interested in your comments and feedback. Contact me by phone at 830.857.1152, by email at dschauer@gvec.org or by mail at P.O. Box 118, Gonzales, Texas 78629.
