Happy New Year! To say that 2020 was full of challenges would be an understatement. But while it was a difficult year, I am proud of our communities, our businesses, and our citizens for persevering and for finding innovative ways to live their lives and conduct their business amidst the ongoing pandemic.

More than just surviving, you are also giving back at unprecedented levels. LPEA’s annual Fill the Bucket food drive in November collected more than 6,200 pounds of food and $1,000 in cash for local food banks. At the time of writing this, you have also donated a collective $13,500 to our Giving Tree program, to help families struggling to pay their LPEA bill over the holiday season. I am grateful – every day – to be living in this community during these unprecedented times.

At LPEA, our commitment to powering your lives remains strong. We’ve just finalized a five-year operational work plan to help achieve LPEA’s Strategic Goal as set by the board, to deliver affordable, reliable, and clean power.

The work plan sets six priority areas to help focus our efforts over the next five years. If you want to learn more about these priority areas, including our targets and key initiatives, I encourage you to read the full work plan at lpea.coop/mission-vision-plan. Comments and questions are welcome at comments@lpea.coop.

Here’s to hoping that 2021 brings much joy and peace to your lives. For my part, I hope to be able to meet more of you face-to-face this year. Until then, know that LPEA is hard at work keeping your lights on.