Despite the threat of rain, almost 200 members of Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative breezed through the first drive-through Annual Meeting in the cooperative’s history on Tuesday, May 11, 2021. Under large covered tents in the parking lot of The Silos on 77 in Giddings, members stayed in their cars to get information about Bluebonnet. They chatted with the co-op’s Board of Directors, executives and employees and registered to win door prizes.

“We are all happy to return to having our Annual Meeting with members this year,” said Ben Flencher, Bluebonnet’s Board chairman. “It sure was nice to see and visit with our friends and neighbors, even if it was through their vehicles’ windows.”

Though communities and businesses are opening in the wake of COVID-19, out of caution for Bluebonnet’s members and employees, the drive-through format of the meeting, with employees wearing masks when communicating with members, reduced the risk of tranmitting the virus.

During the Annual Meeting two incumbent directors were re-elected. The directors were Shana Whiteley, District 2, Travis County, and Bryan Bracewell, District 3, Bastrop County.

“Congratulations to Directors Whiteley and Bracewell on being re-elected to our Board,” Flencher said. “Bryan and Shana bring their talents and years of experience doing business and living in their communities to our board room. They greatly contribute to Bluebonnet’s success and do an outstanding job representing our members and their co-op.”

Whiteley has served on Bluebonnet’s Board of Directors since 2017.

“Bluebonnet is an organization of exceptional quality and integrity,” Whiteley said. “Every decision is made with the utmost care and consideration for our members. It is my privilege and honor to be re-elected to the Board during this exciting time of growth and prosperity.”

Bracewell has served on Bluebonnet’s Board of Directors since 2018.

“I am honored and humbled to be re-elected to serve Bluebonnet’s members on the Board of Directors,” Bracewell said. “The commitment and care everyone at Bluebonnet has for the members and communities we serve are rooted in the co-op’s 82-year history. I am thankful for the opportunity to contribute to Bluebonnet’s success.”

More than 6,750 Bluebonnet members participated in this year’s Annual Meeting, either in-person or by submitting proxy forms. The proxies established a quorum for the Annual Meeting. There was no new business on the meeting’s agenda, but had there been, it would have been voted on by members being represented by their proxy.

“This was a wonderful Annual Meeting,” said Matt Bentke, Bluebonnet’s general manager. “We weren’t sure what to expect from a drive-through meeting, but, judging from my conversations with members, it was a great success. We are grateful for everyone who came by to ask questions, do a little business or just say hello, and appreciate all the members who were unable to attend the meeting but supported their cooperative by sending in their proxies.”

Bluebonnet members who submitted proxy forms were also entered into the drawings for numerous door prizes, including a 2008 Chevrolet 1500 extended cab being retired from the cooperative’s fleet and two Cub Cadet riding mowers. The names of winners for those prizes will be drawn Wednesday, May 12, 2021. Bluebonnet will contact those winners to arrange for their prize to be picked up or delivered. Prizes were paid for through donations from Bluebonnet vendors.  To see all the information that was provided to members during the Annual Meeting, visit bluebonnet.coop/annualmeeting. You can also watch a video featuring highlights of this year’s Annual Meeting at https://youtu.be/7H5JPgb-f7c.

With the support of a $50,000 grant from Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative and the Lower Colorado River Authority, the Caldwell County Fire Chiefs Association will construct a new fire training facility that can be used by fire departments throughout the area. 

With generous support from the community, the association has raised an additional $60,000 in matching funds for the new facility, which can be used by departments in Caldwell County and neighboring counties.

“Our community understands the role of what our volunteer firefighters do,’’ said Linda Haden, who helped organize local fundraising efforts for the project. “They give 24/7. There’s no prediction and no schedule, and most don’t receive any salary. A lot of people in our outlying areas have watched these teams in action save their pastures or save their homes, and they appreciate what firefighters do and realize the impact that they have.”

The new facility will include movable walls and windows designed to withstand repeated fires. Hands-on, live-fire training provides valuable opportunities for firefighters to improve and maintain their skills in real-life fire conditions.

Without a local burn facility, Caldwell County firefighters have had to travel to places such as Kyle or College Station for training, temporarily reducing resources at their stations while they are away and increasing travel costs. Once the new facility is established, area departments can train together close to home, creating better regional coordination in emergency situations.

“To make the construction of a training facility like this possible is of great importance to us,” said Matt Bentke, General Manager and CEO of Bluebonnet. “Providing a place for multiple fire departments to work and learn together makes the area’s communities safer and stronger. We are proud to partner with the Caldwell County Fire Chiefs Association on this important project. Safety is a top priority for Bluebonnet – one of our core values – so supporting those who help our region stay safe is very rewarding.”

“The new facility offers the ability to create a county enforcement team where everybody works together,” Haden said. “It becomes more efficient and safer for our firefighters and leads to better protection for our community. Not only do they start learning to work as a unit, there is no duplication of efforts. If there is a major fire like Bastrop had, the team can come together and already know they are responsible for this or that activity.

The center will have a long-lasting impact for both firefighters and residents, with additional fundraising planned to add more training props and a community classroom in the future, Haden said.

“This facility will touch a lot of different lives on a lot of different levels,” Haden said. “This grant will be a catalyst to grow something really phenomenal for this county.”

The community grant is one of seven grants being awarded by Bluebonnet and the LCRA through LCRA’s Community Development Partnership Program, which helps volunteer fire departments, local governments, emergency responders and nonprofit organizations fund capital improvement projects in LCRA’s wholesale electric, water and transmission service areas. The program is part of LCRA’s effort to give back to the communities it serves. Bluebonnet Electric Cooperative is one of LCRA’s wholesale electric customers and is a partner in the grant program.

Applications for the next round of grants will be accepted in July. More information is available at lcra.org/cdpp.