August 29, 2024—It is with heavy hearts that the staff of the Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association (WECA) has announced President and CEO Steve Freese has lost his battle with cancer. Freese passed away Wednesday morning at his home with family by his side. He was 64. Freese was originally diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer in early summer of 2022 and his initial success in fighting the disease allowed him to return to work in February 2023. He returned to medical leave July 8, 2024, and his condition declined. For more information and news release, please go to: https://lnkd.in/gYEtjwgp https://lnkd.in/gya-mHuH Visitation will be held Friday, September 6 at Haudenshield Funeral Home & Crematory in Cuba City, and the funeral will be Saturday, September 7 at St. Joseph’s Catholic Church in Sinsinawa. Please see Haudenshield Funeral Home for more information. https://lnkd.in/g8Rqa4C6
Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association
Utilities
MADISON, Wisconsin 428 followers
WECA provides leadership and professional services to our 25 member cooperatives.
About us
The Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association (WECA) is a statewide trade association with a membership of 24 distribution cooperatives and one generation and transmission cooperative, whose co-op member-owners reside in Wisconsin, Illinois, upper Michigan, Iowa, and Minnesota. The nation’s first statewide trade association for electric cooperatives, WECA was officially organized on April 30, 1936. The services WECA has provided to Wisconsin’s electric cooperatives have varied over the decades. It once housed an engineering department to assist in construction of rural electric distribution systems. It has provided insurance coverage, and sold household appliances and electrical construction materials for use by member cooperatives. Appliance sales ended long ago. The insurance and materials sales have spun off to other cooperative enterprises with WECA playing a central role in their formation. Today, WECA specializes in government advocacy on behalf of Wisconsin electric cooperatives, safety and regulatory services, education in cooperative governance for its co-ops leaders and their employees. WECA leads wide-ranging communications efforts designed to inform those responsible for co-op management and operations as well as the membership at large, regarding industry developments and policy issues of interest and concern to electric cooperatives and the member-owners they serve. In 2013 the WECA Board of Directors adopted a mission statement summing up the goal of the statewide organization’s service as supporting electric cooperatives’ efforts “to improve the quality of life for their members.” The board also adopted a statement saying the organization would carry out this broad remit “by providing leadership on key legislative and regulatory issues, fostering a positive image of electric cooperatives, and supporting quality of life in communities through education and training services."
- Website
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http://weca.coop
External link for Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association
- Industry
- Utilities
- Company size
- 2-10 employees
- Headquarters
- MADISON, Wisconsin
- Type
- Nonprofit
- Founded
- 1936
Locations
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Primary
Get directions
222 West Washington Avenue, Suite 680
MADISON, Wisconsin 53703-2719, US
Employees at Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association
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Jennifer Taylor
Executive and Editorial Assistant at Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association
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Dana Kelroy
Editor, Wisconsin Energy Cooperative News at WECA
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Wendy Fassbind
Director of Education and Events at Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association
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Rob Richard
Executive Leadership, Government Relations, Member Advocacy
Updates
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The Wisconsin Electric Cooperative Association welcomed nearly 70 cooperative government relations’ professionals from all over the country this week as they hosted the 2024 RESMA Lobby Clinic at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, WI. This annual event brings statewide and G&T lobbyists together to discuss the latest governmental and regulatory issues that are happening in Washington, D.C. and in statehouses across the U.S. Attendees also heard from speakers covering topics in artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, broadband and energy funding programs, and election analysis for president and the hottest U.S. Senate and House races. WECA Vice President of Government Relations and External Affairs, Rob Richard, said his colleagues were absolutely stunned by the grandeur and history of Lambeau Field and the meeting facilities where they gathered for three days. Lambeau Field truly is one-of-a-kind and we are very fortunate to have this world-class stadium in our backyard. Pictured -- Dr. David Gattie, University of Georgia
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WECA is hosting a full class at an OSHA 10-Hour training course this week in Eau Claire. Matt Edmonds from SET Solutions LLC is instructing this program tailored specifically for the electric power industry. Participants who complete the course will receive a certificate of completion as well as their OSHA certification. https://lnkd.in/g2Zcn-xC
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These former operations managers/line superintendents were honored with lineman statues at today's Electric Operations Conference & Expo in Wisconsin Dells. The statues are presented to operations managers who have either retired or been promoted to general manager/CEO positions at their respective electric cooperatives. Pictured left to right are Jon Congdon of Adams-Columbia Electric Cooperative, Rob Dooley of St. Croix Electric Cooperative, and Tim Holtan of Riverland Energy Cooperative, all of whom have been promoted to general manager/CEO positions. Not pictured is Shawn Pietrzak of Adams-Columbia Electric Cooperative, who was also given a lineman statue to honor his retirement.
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Wisconsin electric cooperative directors gathered today for Board Leadership (BLC) training covering ESG and the Cooperative Difference. Energy transition, member interest in Environment, Social, and Governance (ESG), and Beneficial Electrification (BE) are three concepts that bring electric cooperatives challenges as well as opportunities.
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