Runestone Electric Association held its Annual Meeting on Wednesday, April 22, at the Alexandria Area High School Performing Arts Center. Board of Directors seats were determined in Districts 3, 6, and 7, and scholarships were awarded to 27 students.
Runestone Electric’s bylaws allow for uncontested director elections to be elected by acclamation. Three directors ran unopposed and were reelected. These include Jon Winter, District 3; Joel Seela, District 6 and Matthew Mattson, District 7.
Board President Andy Anderson and CEO Al Haman reported on the cooperative’s activities and financial condition during the business meeting. Anderson shared the process for restoring power outages and highlighted the Operation Round Up program, the Member Tour held in October, and the REA employee group.
“At year-end, the cooperative’s total assets were $111.5 million. That includes plant assets like the office and warehouse, lines, poles, and transformers. All our ratios exceed lending requirements. The cooperative finished 2025 with 151 net new services,” said CEO Haman. Inflation, Mid-Continent Independent System Operator (MISO) market dynamics, demand side management programs, Minnesota’s carbon-free by 2040 law, Minnesota’s nuclear moratorium, and data centers were also discussed in the CEO Report.
Twenty-seven students whose parents or guardians are REA members received $1,000 scholarships funded through unclaimed capital credits. Randomly drawn from each of the seven REA districts, winners include:
- Rowan Boesl, Rowan’s parents are Brent & Amanda Boesl, Parkers Prairie
- Sophie Pfeffer, Sophie’s parents are Ken & Kristine Pfeffer, Parkers Prairie
- Samara Groetsch, Samara’s parents are Corey & Stephanie Groetsch, Carlos
- Olivia Suchy, Olivia’s parents are Jacob & Jacki Suchy, Parkers Prairie
- Hayden Lenarz, Hayden’s parents are Thomas & Denise Lenarz, Sartel
- Ava Klimek, Ava’s parents are Daniel & Sarah Klimek, Alexandria
- Jaiden Anderson, Jaiden’s parents are Tyler & Kellie Anderson, Evansville
- Whitney Blume, Whitney’s parents are Dominic & Charlene Blume, Elbow Lake
- Carter Kjesbo, Carter’s parents are Brian & Nicole Kjesbo, Barrett
- Julian Ramos, Julian’s parents are Jorge Ramos & Stephanie Rutten-Ramos, Farwell
- Rose Schonberg, Rose’s parents are Nathan & Jessica Schonberg, Farwell
- Benjamin Dehne, Benjamin’s parents are Jason & Danelle Dehne, Montevideo
- Abbey Walz, Abby’s parents are John & Amanda Walz, Alexandria
- Lacey Siira, Lacey’s parents are Andy & Emily Siira, Brandon
- Meadow Zimpel, Meadow’s parents are Philip & Kyrsten Zimpel, Alexandria
- Sullivan Rooney, Sullivan’s parents are Ryan & Hannah Rooney, Alexandria
- Rebecca Wold, Rebecca’s parents are Jared & Pamela Wold, Alexandria
- Lillyana Gylsen, Lillyana’s parents are Lee & Kim Gylsen, Alexandria
- Maddi Bouldin, Maddi’s parents are Shawn & Jessi Bouldin, Nelson
- Levi Middendorf, Levi’s parents are Travis & Jen Middendorf, Osakis
- Maari Kvidt, Maari’s parents are Ben & Abbey Kvidt, Alexandria
- Amelia Crossley, Amelia’s parents are Larry & Darla Crossley, Carlos
- Nora Anderson, Nora’s parents are Mikkel & Amanda Anderson, Kensington
- Trayton Zeithamer, Trayton’s parents are Randy & Tammy Zeithamer, Starbuck
- Lily Mahoney, Lily’s parents are Paul & Christine Mahoney, Kensington
- Kendall Brueggemeier, Kendall’s parents are Brandon Brueggemeier & Lisa Hilgers Brueggemeier, Waconia
- Ryan Greseth, Ryan’s parents are Cory & Melanie Greseth, Villard
Immediately following the adjournment of the meeting, the Board of Directors held a Reorganization Meeting to elect officers. Elected were Gary (Andy) Anderson (District 1), President; Mike Loken (District 5), Vice President; Matthew Mattson (District 7), Treasurer; and Dave Staples (District 4), Secretary. Other directors include Barbara Johnson (District 2), Jon Winter (District 3), and Joel Seela (District 6).
Runestone Electric Association serves over 15,500 accounts in the rural areas of Douglas, Pope, Grant, Stevens, Ottertail, Stearns, and Todd counties.