Twin Valleys customers are well served

Let's go back in time. Let's go back to the year 1943. The world was at war, Franklin Delano Roosevelt was president and -- in the Nebraska counties of Frontier, Furnas, Gosper, Harlan, Phelps and Red Willow -- farmers and businessmen were joining together to form a rural electric cooperative.

It had taken eight years to get the rural electrification movement in motion in the area, but once the effort began it wasn't long until there was action.

The first REA organizational meeting took place in the Butler law offices in Cambridge. That meeting -- in late 1943 -- began with a small, concerned group checking on the possibility of the organization borrowing funds from the U.S. government to build rural power lines. It wasn't long after that -- on Jan. 31, 1944 -- that Twin Valley Electrical Cooperative was formed.

Within months the name was changed to Twin Valleys Electric Membership Association, and, over time, the name was tweaked again to the title it goes by today: Twin Valley Public Power District.

To some it seems impossible, but 60 years have passed since Twin Valley came into being. To mark the occasion, an open house is planned Tuesday, Aug. 17, at the Twin Valley Public Power District offices, located on the west side of Cambridge alongside U.S. Highway 6-34.

There will be a free lunch from 11:30 to 1:30, with the program taking place between 12:30 and 1. During the half-hour presentation, memories will be featured in a video presentation showing past staff and operational highlights.

From the original investment of $310,000 to build 209 miles of line, Twin Valley has grown into an electrical provider with $7.1 million in annual revenues. That comes from more than 6,000 services, which -- together -- use 90 million kilowatt hours of power annually.

From those pioneering days to the present, the growth has been extraordinary. Now, Twin Valley's volume is roughly one-third from irrigation, one-third from residential and one-third from other uses, including business enterprises and agricultural uses other than irrigation.

While REA is often thought of as just a farm service, it has grown to be much more than that. For example, Twin Valley is now the power provider for ten towns: Danbury, Lebanon, Ragan, Wilsonville, Hendley, Edison, Stamford, Orleans, Huntley and Republican City. In addition, Twin Valley sells wholesale power to Bartley, Holbrook and Cambridge.

Ken Johnson, who is just the fourth manager in Twin Valley's history, said the highest praise needs to go to the REA staff, both past and present. "They do an outstanding job. We are fortunate to be so well served."