— from Suzanne Olson for OPALCO —

Co-op members understand the power of the vote – it’s in our DNA. With Americans holding more than 350 million co-op memberships and rural electric cooperatives serving 75% of our country’s land mass: we have the power! OPALCO, the Orcas Food Co-op and San Juan Island Food Co-op encourage you to register to vote, cast your ballot, and advocate for friends and family to show up on Election Day, too.

October is National Cooperative Month and a great time to celebrate what it means to be a co-op member: democracy, community, and resiliency. Please join us for treats, refreshments, and voter registration at co-op member appreciation events in October:

Thursday, October 4
Orcas Food Co-op: 10 a.m. – 2 p.m.
San Juan Island Food Co-op: 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.
Lopez Island OPALCO Crew Station: 12 – 2 p.m.
Eastsound OPALCO headquarters: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Thursday, October 11
San Juan Island Food Co-op @ San Juan Bakery: 5:30 p.m.

Thursday, October 18
Friday Harbor OPALCO office: 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Voter registration forms will also be available in OPALCO’s offices and you can register online at www.sanjuanco.com/1225/Voter-Information with MyVote. Go online today to check your name and address for any changes so that your ballot gets to you in time.

Co-ops Vote (www.vote.coop) is a non-partisan program developed by the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA), the national service organization that represents the nation’s more than 900 private, not-for-profit, consumer-owned electric cooperatives.

For the latest information about OPALCO, go to: www.opalco.com; sign up for our email newsletter (https://www.opalco.com/about/email-signup/); and follow us on Facebook (Orcas Power & Light Cooperative) and Twitter (@orcaspower). OPALCO is our member-owned cooperative, powering about 11,000 members on 20 islands in San Juan County since 1937.