Berthelot elected as NRECA Director along with ALEC officers

In July, the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives (ALEC) held its annual meeting in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. ALEC had an impressive lineup of presentations and speakers throughout the multi-day event including NRECA CEO Jim Matheson, Louisiana Public Service Commissioner and Chairman Craig Greene, and U.S. House Editor and senior election analyst for The Cook Political Report David Wasserman.  Meeting attendees also received industry updates and best practices advice from NRUCFC and CoBank financial institutions, Pioneer Utility Resources print and digital communications, Louisiana Department of Transportation, Federated Rural Insurance Exchange, Touchstone Energy, and NRECA’s ACRE Political PAC and Young Adult Member Engagement initiatives.

Reappointed by their respective cooperatives to serve 3-year terms as ALEC Directors are Teddy Welch (BECi), Mark Brown (Claiborne Electric), Roger Dale DeHart (SLECA), and Dennis Glass (WSTE).  The board also elected their 2021-2022 officers: President J.R. Hickman (BECi), Vice President Dennis Glass (WSTE), and Secretary/Treasurer Michael Heinen (JDEC).

Danny Berthelot (DEMCO/ALEC) was elected by representatives from the Louisiana electric cooperatives to serve as the Louisiana Director on the NRECA Board at the July annual meeting of the Association of Louisiana Electric Cooperatives. He will begin serving his first two-year term in March 2022.

Berthelot was elected to the DEMCO Board of Directors in 1989.  He currently serves as President of the DEMCO board and serves on all the DEMCO committees, the DEMCO Foundation Board of Directors, and the DEMCO Energy Services Board of Directors. He has earned the following credentials from NRECA:  Credentialed Cooperative Director, Board Leadership, and Board Director Gold.

Berthelot has also served on the ALEC Board of Directors since 2005 and currently serves on the ALEC Executive, Finance, Policy and Member Engagement Committees.  In the past he has served on the ALEC Safety and Loss Control Committee, as Vice President of the ALEC board from 2006-2008, and as President from 2008-2010.

NRECA is the Arlington, Va. – based trade association that represents the interests of more than 900 cooperatives and 42 million members across the country, as well as public power districts, and public utility districts. The board is composed of one representative from each of the 48 states served by electric cooperatives.

“I am honored that my colleagues elected me to represent their best interests on the NRECA Board, and to champion matters that bring value to our distribution cooperatives.”  Berthelot said, adding “I promise to work diligently on their behalf by ensuring that our national organization keeps the members we serve and our electric cooperatives as their top priority during these very tumultuous and evolving times in the electric utility industry.”

“I look forward to the opportunity to work with cooperative leaders from across the country to advance the cooperative business model and position cooperatives to continue their successful efforts to provide reliable, affordable, and safe electric service.”

NRECA Directors serve in a critical role in the cooperative network and are responsible for setting the strategic course for the association, which is considered one of the most influential organizations in the federal policy arena because of its not-for-profit status and its success in supporting initiatives that are in the best interests of cooperative members, regardless of partisanship.

###