Milton “Doyle” Hines (Nov. 24, 1931-Jan 6., 2024)
At GVEC, we are proud of our past and accept the great honor of being entrusted stewards of the Cooperative for the future. Not only were our founding members tenacious and innovative, but so too were the leaders and visionaries who took on the business responsibilities of running a cooperative many years ago. Believe it or not, in the 85 years of GVEC’s history, there have been only five general managers. When I think about the people who have influenced me throughout my career, I am humbled to share the position of general manager with those who preceded me. Certainly, any success I’ve enjoyed is because of so many people who have come before me, helped me, taught me and given me opportunities. Mr. Milton “Doyle” Hines was one of those influential people I had the privilege of knowing.
Mr. Hines served GVEC as general manager for twenty-one years from 1972-1993, the third in our history. I admired Mr. Hines, mainly because of his reputation. People thought so highly of him and how he built the organization, not just at GVEC, but around the state and the nation—people knew who Mr. Hines was. The experience of working with him and learning from him early in my career at GVEC left a lasting impression.
Boldness and instinct were characteristics of Mr. Hines that led to remarkable change for GVEC and the electric industry. Under his direction, GVEC led the way in all-electric homes, low electric rates and energy conservation efforts. Moves like this balanced the electric load and fixed costs over the course of the year, rather than being subjected to the seasonal swings of winter and summer.
Other notable successes under the direction of Mr. Hines were GVEC paying off its loan to the REA in 1986, creating the Guadalupe Valley Development Corporation (GVDC) in 1987, and installing a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system in the 1980s. During the more-than-two decades Hines served as general manager, GVEC’s capital worth increased from $13 million to $85 million.
Mr. Hines’ strong intuition and strict business acumen paved the way to the diverse, resilient and financially fit Cooperative we are today. His high expectations and regard for results led to numerous state-wide and national appointments to cooperative-related organizations. I am grateful to carry on those cooperative relationships, connections, and the deep respect he taught me for staying focused on making the right decisions for the membership as a whole.
Above all, Mr. Hines prioritized people and spent his tenure as general manager ensuring that the employees and the community would benefit from GVEC. Naturally, he recognized long-term Cooperative success was dependent upon well-trained and satisfied employees as well as thriving communities with access to water, health care and other advances for quality of life. I sincerely recognize and thank Mr. Hines for his legacy of unprecedented accomplishments for the members past and present of GVEC, our South Texas region, and the Cooperative industry nationwide.
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.
