Once again, it is time for the WCEC Annual Meeting of Members. We encourage every member to attend the meeting to vote for their representatives on the board. This year, the meeting will be held as a drive-through event on Wednesday, May 27, at El Camp Middle School.

The board and I would like to express our sincere thanks for the opportunity to serve you, the members of the cooperative. We hope everyone is in good health and want to extend our thoughts and prayers to those who may be facing health challenges.

Wharton County Electric Cooperative is dedicated to delivering reliable and affordable electricity and the high level of service you expect. Through ongoing collaboration between our board and employees, we continue to plan strategically and enhance operations to prepare for the cooperative’s future.

This year, the board is fulfilling one of its most important responsibilities—hiring a new GM/CEO. Gary Raybon has planned his retirement for the end of June. While Gary’s retirement is well deserved, it will leave the board with big shoes to fill!

One of the greatest benefits of being in a co-op is that your interests always come first when making important decisions like this. As members ourselves, we plan and lead with everyone’s well-being in mind. We have partnered with the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association’s executive search team to support us in the hiring process. They have led us through identifying the skills and qualities to best fit WCEC, finalizing the job listing, posting the position, and narrowing down the candidates. We are currently arranging interviews with our top choices, and plan to have the new CEO on board in June. [Note: The WCEC Board of Directors selected Kyle Wallis as the next WCEC CEO in April - read more here.]

In making this decision and looking to the future, our responsibility remains clear: to continue delivering reliable, economical power while delivering the best service for our members. It has been an honor to serve as a director, and I am grateful for the trust you have placed in me over the years.

I want to thank my fellow board members and the WCEC employees for their continued commitment to our members and our communities. We look forward to seeing you at the Annual Meeting of Members.

2025 was another successful year for Wharton County Electric Cooperative. In April, we achieved 1 million hours without a lost-time accident. This achievement represents twelve years of our employees’ hard work and dedication to safety. I commend the employees on this accomplishment and thank the Board for their continued support of our safety programs.

WCEC members used a record 256,726,567 kWh of energy in 2025, surpassing 2024 by 4.93%. This increase shows a growth in both residential and commercial/industrial loads.

On the financial front, we met or exceeded all the metrics set forth by our bankers and Board Policies. Our assets surpassed $90 million for the first time. With the patronage capital retirement credited to WCEC members’ bills at the end of September 2025, the total amount of patronage returned to our member-owners now stands at $6.6 million.

WCEC is a stable, well-run organization with a bright future. I thank the membership for always electing board members who are caring and involved in the cooperative’s operations.

On a personal note, this is my last Annual Meeting of Members as I will be retiring at the end of June.

I appreciate everything WCEC has done for my family and me through the years. I wish WCEC and the new CEO the best of luck in the future.