Warsaw, Va. — Members elected James Wise, representing Westmoreland County, and Mary Reed, representing King George County, to continue their service to the Northern Neck Electric Cooperative board of directors at the co-op’s 89th Annual Membership Meeting on Thursday, Sept. 17. Wise, who has served on the NNEC board for nearly 20 years, is the current chairman. Reed was appointed to her seat earlier this year.
The meeting, held at the co-op’s warehouse facility and livestreamed, opened with an inspiring performance of the “Star-Spangled Banner” by Bri’Elle Hall, a Westmoreland High School senior and recent delegate representing NNEC at the Electric Cooperative Youth Tour in Washington, D.C., this past June. Joshua Morgan, who also represented Westmoreland High School at the 2026 Youth Tour, was in attendance as well.
After a welcome message from Wise, Secretary-Treasurer Mary Catherine Jones updated members and guests on the co-op’s 2025 performance and financial position. President and CEO Richard McLendon gave an informative report regarding topics such as data centers, power supply, regulatory challenges, and highlights and milestones from 2025.
“Growth can be a good thing, but growth without thoughtful planning can create significant risk,” McLendon said, while reminding members that their co-op staff work diligently to ensure any financial burden associated with serving new large-load projects is not passed on to members. “Our responsibility is to protect our existing membership.”
A. Fleet Dillard III, the co-op’s attorney, certified the election results.
Five NNEC members who voted by proxy were randomly selected to receive $500 credits on their electric bills, while five additional members who attended the meeting in person were awarded $100 bill credits.
