Baldwin EMC held its 2020 Annual Meeting at the Baldwin County Coliseum on Thursday, November 5. The meeting included voting in elections for trustees and bylaw revisions.
Robert J. Kaiser was re-elected to another term representing District 5 and Jimmy A. LaFoy was re-elected to serve as the representative for District 7 on Baldwin EMC’s Board of Trustees. More than 17,600 members voted either in person or by mail in this year’s election. The Annual Meeting also included special addresses from Board President Peggy Vanover Barnes and Chief Executive Officer Karen Moore.
Kaiser has served on Baldwin EMC’s Board of Trustees since 2011 and has earned the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association (NRECA) Credentialed Cooperative Director Certificate, NRECA Board Leadership Certificate and the Director Gold Certificate. Mr. Kaiser grew up on a family farm in Baldwin County and graduated from Foley High School. He earned a degree in electronics technology from Southwest State Technical College and began his career with the Boeing Company. He later worked as a Broadcast Engineer, then with the Alabama Power Company at Barry Steam Plant, and moved on to Gulf Telephone Company in 1993. Kaiser is married to Dianne Epperson Kaiser and has three sons, six granddaughters and two great-grandsons. He is a member of Vernant Park Baptist Church and is also a member of the Gideons International.
LaFoy has served on the Board of Trustees since 2009, is an NRECA Credentialed Cooperative Director and has earned the NRECA Board Leadership Certificate. He holds a bachelor’s degree in commerce and business administration with a major in accounting from the University of Alabama, is a Certified Public Accountant, and has owned and operated an accounting practice for 50 years. LaFoy has served on the boards of Farmers National Bank of Opelika, Ala., and First American Bank of Decatur, Ala., and presently serves on the Board of Directors of Southern States Bank of Anniston, Ala., where he is also a founding organizer. Additionally, LaFoy serves on the Board of Directors of the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation. He is a member of the Alabama Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce and the Alabama Society of Certified Accountants, where he also served a term as President. LaFoy is married to Shirley Bradford LaFoy, and has two children and four grandchildren. He attends and is a member of First Baptist Church of Gulf Shores.
Immediately following the Annual Meeting, Baldwin EMC’s board of trustees held a re-organizational meeting to select board officers for the upcoming year. Peggy Vanover Barnes was re-elected to serve as president, Tommie Werneth was once again chosen to serve as vice president and Jimmy LaFoy was re-elected to serve as secretary/treasurer.