April 2005
29
Middle Georgia EMC Newsletter
Member Newsletter
Middle Georgia
Middle Georgia
The Official Newsletter of Middle Georgia Electric Membership Corporation
P.O. Box 190, Vienna, GA 31092
April 2005
MANAGER'S
MANAGER'S
Comments
Comments
By Hugh Richardson
nother customer service is now available to our
members. You can log on to our Web site to
access your electric account and pay your bill online.
HERE ARE THE STEPS TO TAKE:
1.
Log on to
WWW.MGEMC.COM
.
2.
In the left column of the
Web site home page, click on
PAYMENT OPTIONS
.
3.
On the payment option
page, click on
VIEW AND PAY
BILL ONLINE
, which will be
located near the middle of
the page.
4.
A new page will come up
and will have
ONLINE BILLING INFORMATION
as
a header.
5.
Click on
CUSTOMER LOGIN
.
6.
The page will then ask for your account number
and password. Enter only the
FIRST 4 DIGITS
of your
account number.
7.
We will set you up with your first
PASSWORD
. Call
our office to get your initial password and then you
can change it to your preference.
8.
Once you enter the account number and pass-
word, click enter and
you will get a page that
says
ACCOUNT LIST
,
which shows your account, status, address and
balance.
9.
On the left side you have several options, includ-
ing
VIEW MY BILL, MAKE PAYMENT, and ACCOUNT
INFORMATION
.
10.
VIEW MY BILL
shows a 24-month history of the
account. The "binoculars" icon will allow you to see
the actual printed bill for each of the past three
months. The "graph" icon will show a 13-
month graph history of the kWh usage.
11.
MAKE PAYMENT
is where you
actually enter in your credit card
information to pay your bill. There are NO fees for
use of your credit card.
12.
ACCOUNT INFORMATION
allows you to change
your password, change your account information,
and enter your credit card profile so you won't have
to enter it every time.
We also have e-billing available, so when you call
to request your online password, we can set this up
at your request to receive your bill via e-mail each
month in addition to, or instead of, a mailed state-
ment. We hope this service is convenient and easy to
use for those of you who prefer this method. Please
give us feedback with your experience on our Web
site. Our business e-mail is mgemc@sowega.net.
On-Line Account Access
On-Line Account Access
A
30
GEORGIA MAGAZINE
Middle Georgia EMC Newsletter
retirement dinner was held to honor
Charles Humphries on the evening of
January 31, 2005 at the Horseshoe
Restaurant in Hawkinsville, Georgia. Humphries
had been an employee with Middle Georgia EMC
for nearly 32 years.
He began his career at Middle Georgia EMC
on June 1, 1973, after serving in the Army in
Vietnam and being awarded the Purple Heart
Medal of Honor.
Charles is shown with members of his line crew.These men
worked together for many, many years.
Charles was presented a lineman's statue for his years of
service along with a photo signed by all of our employees.
Charles is
serenaded by
Justin Lamb
on his special
night.
Nathaniel Lewis,
a first class line-
man on Charles'
crew expressed
to all of our
employees and
directors how
much he would
miss working
with Charles.
General
Manager, Hugh
Richardson,
spoke to our
employees and
directors about
what a special
person Charles
is and what an
asset he was to
our cooperative.
Many employees and their spouses showed up to extend Charles
best wishes in his retirement.
A
Charles Humphries Honored
at Retirement Dinner
Charles Humphries Honored
at Retirement Dinner
April 2005
31
Middle Georgia EMC Newsletter
transformer? Isn't that the toy
that changes from a spaceship
to a robot superhero or something?
Well, yes and no. There are toys
called Transformers, but the trans-
formers we're talking about aren't
playthings. The transformers that
electric cooperatives and other utili-
ties use are even more
powerful and remark-
able when you consid-
er the job they do.
Distribution trans-
formers reduce voltage
for delivering electrici-
ty to consumers. They
vary in size and style
but the most common
type, the can-shaped
steel tanks often seen
near the cross-arms of a utility pole,
contain thousands of feet of wire
coiled around a special laminated
steel core. The tank is filled with
insulating oil.
The pole-mounted can is easily
recognized, but "pad-mounted"
transformers, so called because they
are mounted on concrete pads, are
found in many neighborhoods
where co-op power is delivered
through underground lines. Pad-
mounted transformers are housed in
large, green, box-shaped metal cabi-
nets on the ground.
Teach your chil-
dren never to play
around these trans-
formers, or any type
of electrical equip-
ment. These trans-
formers are not toys;
they are equipment
used to house elec-
tricity. But don't let
that be the only les-
son. The next time you're riding
along the highway and see a trans-
former on a co-op pole, share what
you've learned. Who knows, you
may have a future co-op lineworker
or engineer in the family!
Pole-mounted transformer
Pad-mounted transformer
These transformers aren't for kids
A
ll over America, electric cooper-
ative (EMC) members are
choosing the people they want to
serve on their electricity supplier's
board of directors. They're voting
on whether the co-op should
merge with another
one to save
money. They're
deciding if it's
better for their
electricity
rates to be set
by state gov-
ernment or by
local leaders.
This isn't happen-
ing in most big cities.
Investor-owned utilities there don't
let their customers make decisions
like that. Those things are decided
by the big stockholders and by
important company executives.
But it's par for the course in
rural areas and small towns, where
the EMCs are cooperatively owned
and operated by their members. All
members of an electric
cooperative's board
of directors are also
consumers. Anyone
who buys electricity
from an electric
cooperative may run
for a seat on its
board.
And anyone who
buys electricity from an
electric cooperative gets
to vote on whether that candidate
may serve on the board.
So an invitation to attend your
EMC's annual meeting means
much more than hearing some
speeches and eating a plate full of
barbecue. It means you get to vote
on some important business con-
cerning the cooperative you
patronize.
And you should. Every person
who buys electricity from a coop-
erative is also a part owner of that
co-op. That's the cooperative way
of doing business. And don't you
want to have a say in how your
business is being run?
Attend your annual meeting.
It's where the owners of your
cooperative--people like you--get
together to learn about their busi-
ness and make sure it's being run
the way the members think is best.
Customer choice
These transformers aren't for kids
A
A
Customer choice
32
Middle Georgia EMC Newsletter
Board of Directors
Don Wood
President
Johnny Noble
Vice President
Kay West
Secretary
John David McCall
Treasurer
Jerry F. Rhodes
Director
Royce Conner
Director
Ronnie Fleeman
Director
Ronnie Youngblood
Director
David Dunaway
Director
Davis and Forehand
Attorneys
Staff
Hugh Richardson
General Manager
Lisa Laney
Executive Secretary,
Newsletter Editor
Randy Kent
Office Manager
Mike McGee
Manager of Operations
and Engineering
Vienna Area (229) 268-2671
Rochelle
(Day) (229) 365-2263
(Night) 1-800-342-0144
Hawkinsville
(Day) (478) 892-3436
(Night) 1-800-342-0144
Office Hours
Mon-Fri 8 a.m.-5 p.m.
(Branch offices closed from
12-1 p.m. daily)
Closed Saturday, Sunday and holidays.
There is a dispatcher on call 24 hours
a day for your convenience.
GEORGIA MAGAZINE
A message from
EPA Administrator Mike Leavitt
EARTH DAY:
April 22, 2005
Earth Day is a time to antici-
pate.To envision a future where
we can clean the environment and
affirm our nation's economic com-
petitiveness. A future where accel-
erating the velocity of environ-
mental progress should be our
vision.
One way to celebrate Earth
Day is to produce less waste by
practicing the three Rs:
·
Reduce the amount and toxicity
of trash you discard.
·
Reuse containers and products;
repair what is broken or give it
to someone who can repair it.
·
Recycle as much as possible,
which includes buying products
with recycled content.
For more on ways to celebrate
Earth Day, visit www.earthday.gov.
arth Day is a time to celebrate.
We, the American public, have
accomplished so much. Gone are
the days when air pollution could
turn noon to night, when rivers
caught fire, and toxic waste was
poured down drains.
Earth Day is a time to unite.
The environment knows no bound-
aries.We all breathe the same air,
drink the same water.We all cause
pollution--every one of us.And
working together, we can find the
solutions and effect the changes
needed to protect our planet.
Earth Day is a time to act.To
turn off a light, compost yard
waste, join a car pool, clean a
stream or plant a tree.We know
there are commonsense actions
that will serve our common
interests.
E
EARTH DAY:
April 22, 2005
Years of Service Recognition
Years of Service Recognition
Years of Service Recognition for Middle Georgia EMC's employees who celebrated
an Anniversary in March 2005:
Eddie Rountree
, Line Crew Leader, is celebrating his
31st year at the Co-op as of March 5.
Sheila Keen
, Rochelle Branch Office Cashier, is
celebrating her 14th year of service to our customers on March 18.
Peppy Chancy
,
Right-of-way Crew Leader, is celebrating his 7th year as of March 11.
I would also like to welcome,
J.P. Smith
to our Middle Georgia EMC Family. J.P. is
our new Lineman Trainee and he lives in Vienna, Georgia with his wife, Lynn, and their
son, James Conner.