Medina Electric Cooperative - History

The Rural Electrification Administration was established by Executive Order under President Franklin Roosevelt on May 11, 1935, and on May 20 the following year, the President signed the Rural Electrification Act. This Act established the Rural Electrification Administration (REA) as a lending agency on a continual basis for ten years. Since then, there have been several amendments to the Act.

Because of the great need for electricity in the South Texas area, farmers, ranchers and other concerned groups began meeting together and on November 22, 1938, the first meeting of incorporators and directors of Medina Electric Cooperative was held at the Medina County Agent's office in Hondo. Officers elected were H. H. Decker, President; Claude W. Gilliam, Vice President; Hy F. Buss, Secretary-Treasurer. As the incorporators and first applicants, these gentlemen, all from Hondo, made up the first Board of Directors of the cooperative: H. H. Decker, President; Claude W. Gilliam, Vice President; Hy F. Buss, Secretary-Treasurer; Robert H. Riff, Arthur Grell, A. C. Gilliam, John G. Britsch, James Amberson, and A. L. Haegelin.

Organized in 1938 under the provisions of the United States Rural Electrification Act and incorporated under the provisions of the Texas Electric Cooperative Corporation Act, Medina Electric Cooperative, Inc. is a nonprofit electric cooperative corporation, operating under the seven guiding Cooperative Principles.

The first General Manager (who was also called Project Superintendent) was H. T. Bardin who served from April, 1939, to March, 1940. He was followed by Ted Bredthauer, 1940-47; Sam Lanham, 1947-54; Riggs Shepperd, 1954-61; Jim Myers, 1961-69; L. E. Gross, 1969-80; and Larry Oefinger, 1980-2006. The present General Manager/CEO is Mark Rollans, who has served in that capacity since January 2007.

The construction of the cooperative's lines and facilities have been carried out over the years with funds obtained by loan agreements from the Rural Utilities Service (formerly Rural Electrification Administration or REA), a division within the United States Department of Agriculture, Washington, D.C. In recent years a portion of the financing of Medina Electric Cooperative's lines and facilities has also been obtained from the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation (CFC) and CoBank.

As of January 2007, Medina Electric Cooperative provides service to over 16,000 members with more than 26,000 meter connections throughout a 12,000 square-mile region in the Texas counties of Atascosa, Brooks, Dimmitt, Duval, Edwards, Frio, Jim Hogg, Kinney, LaSalle, McMullen, Medina, Real, Starr, Uvalde, Webb, Zapata, and Zavala counties.

Service is provided through 9,192 miles of electric distribution line, 563 miles of transmission lines, and 37 miles of underground. Power is purchased on a wholesale basis, through purchase agreements with other utilities.

Medina Electric Cooperative has a five-district service area and a three-district voting area. The nine directors serving on the cooperative's board are elected by the membership.

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