Annual Member Festival a huge Success! Madsen, Silverstein, Whitfield win seats in OPALCO 2025 Board Election

Submitted by Orcas Power & Light Cooperative.

On Thursday, April 24, at the OPALCO Business Annual Meeting, Rick Fant of the OPALCO Election and Governance Committee announced the results of the 2025 Board Election. In District 1 (San Juan, et al), Mark Madsen was elected with 1,664 votes. In District 3 (Lopez, et al), Brian Silverstein was elected with 1,674 votes. In District 4 (Shaw, et al), Jerry Whitfield was elected with 1,610 votes. A total of 1,801 ballots were cast, which equates to 15.4% of the membership.

Fant encouraged OPALCO members to step up and serve on the volunteer Elections and Governance Committee. The EGC is responsible for cultivating qualified candidates for each board election.

During the meeting, OPALCO Board President Vince Dauciunas talked about the uncertain future of the co-op’s power supply and the need to build local, renewable energy projects. Twenty-four members participated in the Annual Business Meeting.

The next day the Annual Member Festival was held at the San Juan County Fairgrounds. The festival was a huge success with over 350 co-op members in attendance! The fairgrounds turned into a family-friendly educational activity center. The whole OPALCO team was on hand to welcome attendees, give out swag and help keep the event flowing.

Participants got the chance to hang out with the line crew by going up in the bucket truck, getting a lesson in electrical safety or trying out a hotstick, a tool a lineworker uses to work on energized equipment so they keep their distance and stay safe. Members could also check out the inner workings of a transformer or learn about how to save money and electricity with OPALCO’s on-bill financing program.

There were nine all-electric vehicles from the mainland including a Blade Chevrolet that brought the Silverado, the Blazer, and the Eqinox, Karmart Volkswagen with the ID. Buzz and ID.4, Karmart Nissan with the Aria, Bellevue Cadillac with the Lyriq and the Optiq and Swickward Porsche with the Macan. The Friday Harbor STEM class brought the all-electric vehicle they built and let attendees take a ride around the fairgrounds. Island Rides brought their new all-electric Chevy Blazer.

There was plenty for the kids to do during the festival including snacking on hot dogs and hamburgers, tossing an earthball, riding in the bucket truck, learning about electric safety with the line crew and jumping in the giant bouncy house. Parents could swing by the educational booths to get tips on maximizing energy savings in their house, learn about OPALCO’s on-bill financing and check out some local contractors who provide rooftop solar, efficient windows and more

OPALCO is grateful to all the community partners who shared information, including Rock Island Communications, Sustainable Connections, Comfort Ready Homes, Island Rides, West Mechanical, Orbis World Globes, Western Solar, EcoView Windows & Doors NW and the Friday Harbor High School STEM program. Thanks to donations from vendors and partners, there was a raffle.

The festival will rotate between the islands — next year it will be on Lopez Island!