Albemarle Soundsis published monthly by

Albemarle Electric Membership Corporation

P.O. Box 69Hertford, NC 27944 (252) 426-5735

Gary RayGeneral Manager

Chris PowellEditor

Visit our Web site at:www.aemc.coopFor outages, call1-800-274-2072

We are members of NC 811. Call 811 or 1-800-632-4949

two business days before you plan to dig. They will contact us to locate any underground

electric lines. It’s the law.

May 2015 Proudly serving the members of Albemarle Electric Membership Corporation

Albemarle EMC Carolina Country MAY 2015 21

Closed for Memorial Day

Certification Complete

Electric cooperative representatives meet with Sen. Cook.

We will be closed May 25 for

Memorial Day

Co-ops Meet with Legislators

1945 to Present

70th Anniversary

Representatives from Albemarle Electric Membership Corporation recently met with state legislators to address issues of importance to electric cooperatives.

Albemarle EMC General Manager Gary Ray and Chris Powell, coordinator of public relations, met with representatives Bob Steinburg and Howard Hunter III as well as senators Bill Cook and Erica Smith-Ingram.

One of the main issues discussed was a request for support of Senate Bill 88 “Pole Attachment Compensation.” If ratified the legislation will clarify that electric cooperatives are excluded from Federal Communication Commissions (FCC) pole attachment rate regulation. At issue is the rate electric cooperatives can charge other companies that attach equipment to co-op utility poles. For example when cable companies attach their equipment to utility poles, co-ops incur costs because often taller or heavier duty poles must be used. Co-ops are allowed by law to recover those costs. Cable companies have argued that co-ops should fall under the FCC rate formulas that result in significantly lower pole attachment rates. The FCC rate formulas were originally established for investor-owned utilities that serve significantly denser populations. Because of their large number of utility poles, investor owned utilities can recover their attachment costs at much lower rates. However because co-ops serve mostly rural areas, those lower attachment rates are not sufficient.

“Co-ops are nonprofit, so we’re just looking for a pole attachment rate that is fair and enables us to recover all of our costs,” Ray said. “If the pole attachment rate is too low, our members will end up subsidizing cable companies.”

Legislators were also asked to oppose House Bill 245, which would legalize third-party sales of electricity. Third-party electricity sales occur when a company places renewable energy generation on a consumer’s property and bypasses the incumbent utility. The third-party vendor has no obligation to provide affordable or reliable electricity. However, the co-op does. The co-op incurs a cost to keep service connected to members. The only way the co-op can recover that expense is through electricity rates.

Lineman Apprentice Broc Sutton recently completed his Overhead Line Construction I certification.

Albemarle EMC Carolina Country MAY 2015 22

Washington Youth Tourist

SelectedAlbemarle EMC recently selected two

winners for its annual Washington Youth Tour Contest.

Peyton Hohenstein, a junior at Perquimans County High School, and Rabekah Mattix, a senior at CamTech High School, will represent Albemarle EMC at the 2015

Washington Youth Tour.

The two were chosen based on their academic accomplishments as well as the quality

of an essay regarding grassroots political advocacy.

Peyton is a member of the Beta National Honor Society. He is a member of the Drama Club, the Rotary Interact Club and Upward Bound, which is a college preparatory program.

Rabekah is a member of the National Honor Society and is the vice president of the Student Government Association and president of the Drama Club. She is also a volunteer at the Camden Intermediate School.

“Albemarle EMC is proud to be able to offer this opportunity to these two deserving students,” said Gary Ray, general manager of Albemarle EMC. “We hope they learn a lot about the co-op business model and have a great time.”

The youth tour will be June 13-20. The trip is unlike any other visit to Washington, D.C. Students will receive high-level access to Capital Hill, where they will meet with North Carolina legislators and staff for a question and answer session. In addition to touring several museums and memorials, attendees will board a cruise ship for a tour of the Potomac River.

ACT Grant Benefits School SafetySchools in Elizabeth City and Pasquotank County will

be safer, thanks to a grant from the Albemarle Community Trust.

A grant of $1,500 was given to the Education Foundation of Elizabeth City Pasquotank Public Schools to help provide recording devices and monitors for all 90 of the school busses in Elizabeth City and Pasquotank County.

“If unforeseen incidents do happen, this security measure will record a possible intruder or student-employee situation, therefore helping school officials and others possibly involved to monitor, solve and take appropriate actions,” said Molly Brite, executive director of the foundation.

Forum HeldAn Educating Members Countywide

Forum was recently held for the counties of Pasquotank, Camden and Currituck.

Twenty-four members turned out to hear talks covering a variety of topics related to electric co-ops. Jonetta Long, manager of corporate services, explained to members how the co-op’s member portal enables members to track their own electricity usage on a daily and even hourly basis. She also discussed the co-op’s new Pay As You Go program, which enables members to pay for electricity before it is used.

“Members enrolled in Pay as You Go can pay the amount they choose whenever they choose,” Long said. “There are no disconnect or reconnect fees, and the security deposit is significantly lower.”

Chris Powell, coordinator of public relations, discussed energy efficiency. He explained how the recommended setting for thermostats was 75 in the summer and 65 in the winter. He also discussed how ductless minisplit heating and cooling systems are highly efficient ways to heat and cool a home. The minisplit systems operate through a system of compressors and heads that enable a homeowner to create a zone for every room in their home. Also, minisplit systems are not backed up by heat strips, so they remain efficient even during the coldest temperatures.

Glenn Parks, manager of operations, covered generator safety. Generators should never be connected to a home’s internal wiring system unless a double-throw bypass switch is used. A bypass switch prevents the generator from backfeeding a line, which endangers linemen trying to restore power. Homeowners who do not have a bypass switch should connect individual appliances directly to the generator. Generators also pose a risk of carbon monoxide poisoning if used in a space that is not well ventilated.

Gary Ray, general manager of Albemarle EMC, discussed how the cooperative recently celebrated its 70th anniversary. He also discussed how the co-op fared during the ice storms in February as well as how the extremely cold weather caused the co-op to break its old peak-load record, reaching 85.5 megawatts. In addition Ray talked about the cooperative difference and how Albemarle EMC works to give back.

“In 2014 margins of $1.8 million went to patronage capital,” Ray said. “Our last retirement of capital credits was $350,000 in April of 2014, and our next retirement of capital credits will be $550,000 in April of 2015.” Capital credits are margins that are returned to members, based on their amount of electrical usage.

Throughout the evening, prize drawings were held, and ten lucky members received credits to their power bills.

Members attend a recent Educating Members Countywide Forum, held at College of the Albemarle in Elizabeth City.

Peyton Hohenstein is congratulated by Chante’ Jordan, principal of Perquimans County High School.

Molly Brite, executive director of the Education Foundation of Elizabeth City Pasquotank Public Schools, and Andy Montero receive a grant check.

Rabekah Mattix (right) is congratulated by CamTech Principal Amber Davis.

How Albemarle EMC works to provide its members with the highest-quality service possible.

At Your Service

Albemarle EMC Carolina Country MAY 2015 23

Editor’s note: In recognition of Albemarle EMC’s 70th anniversary, we are celebrating Albemarle EMC’s history. The following are excerpts from a transcribed interview that took place in 1984 with Albemarle EMC member H.E. Daughtry, who was born in 1906 in Perquimans County and worked as a school teacher in the Old Neck community.

Co-op Looks to its Past

H.E. Daughtry: “At that particular time, I was teaching across the road, opposite from where I live, right over there. We had been working; I think we worked about a year. I had come out of the service in 1945. My wife was here. She was young, and she said she missed the meeting the night when they came around and said they were going to get the lights.”

First it just seemed like progress was slow because everybody around here, practically, had lights but us, who wanted them, rather. Over at the school, there were no lights there, because nobody had signed up for the school at that particular time. So then I tried to see if I could get lights for the school. I don’t know if people had a little more compassion for the school, and so we got lights for the school. When we got lights for the school, had them come over here and got lights for us. It was a very happy moment for us. We were excited, glad we had lights. Some neighbors, they had their lights, told someone else they knew we were having a fit ‘cause we had our lights.’ It was old to them; they’d had theirs for two years.”

It was exciting that you could go in there and push a button and then the room be lighted up because it didn’t do that before. It brought to us many things. We built this house in '46, and we had a place laid out for the bathroom. We didn’t get our bath then; we got our bath in ‘49 because of the fact we had current. Not too far after then, we got our freezer. Also had an electric pump, and kept that until 1978 when they got county water.”

Electricity helped to elevate people to

higher laws of thinking. Seems to me with every new invention or advancement, it causes people to think differently about advancing and make somebody try to improve on what you have.”

We were able to do our work more efficiently. In fact we were able to get some things that we had not had before. Well, we had the electric iron, that was our first experience. From there, we had a refrigerator. Those were the first two items we had.”

We were able (to get) current-supported fans. Air conditioners were little known at the time. But we did have electric fans in school, and we did have, well, very sparsely, electric typewriters. We could have football especially; it was played at night, and we had lights.

Prior to electricity, the children were eating and carrying what they call brown bags. And after electricity, we had lunchrooms. There you had to have electricity to use that warmer to keep food, and then, of course, other electrical gadgets such as can openers and what have you.”

Prior to that time, many children didn’t eat breakfast in the morning, and so. Back up just a little. Before we had lunchrooms, at first we didn’t have anything other than what the child brought from home. A little later, they began to give apples to children. A little later they began to give milk - all this before the lunchroom.. And so that’s about all some of ‘em got that day until they went home that night.”

Since electricity, then we had breakfast for children who are not able to get it or parents were ill or whatever. And

these children were able to get a sound breakfast in the morning, which made them more alert for their class work. A hungry child cannot learn.”

When electricity came, it made people to look up, and they were able to get some of the things that we heard about people in the cities had. Electric lights and well, they had the irons, washing machines and what have you. Nothing like that was even thought of in rural (areas) at that particular time. We had one, possibly two lamps to set on the table and one to take with you from one room to the other, because there were no other lights in the house.”

I did almost half of my teaching experience with the kerosene lamps, and I would check my papers at night and so forth with the lamp. I was young, my eyesight was good, and I didn’t feel it was anything harmful to me.”

Most of the washing was done by the ladies, the mother, the housewife, whoever. They had what they called washboards, and they’d have to scrub those clothes after heating them, and they called it boiling, churns out the dirt. Then they had to scrub those clothes to get them white and bring in water from the pump or well to do their rinsing. It was very, very tiresome.”

We had what we used to call outdoor storage. In some cases, they used to call ‘em milk houses. Some few people had milk cows and had a little, special house built on the outside. It was ventilated as well as they could, and that’s where they kept their butter and milk. Another way of preserving it, people who had wells put it in jars and let it down in the well.”