Download Brochure - National Rural Electric Cooperative Association

The Power of ChangeIn 2008, volunteer linemen from the Georgia cooperatives went to the remote mountain regionof Ixcan in Guatemala. Ixcan’s infrastructure had been devastated by the decades-long civil warthat ravaged the country. When the war ended the local municipality established the MunicipalCompany for Rural Electrification, or EMRE as it is known in Spanish, to begin the process ofrestoring power to the region. EMRE made great progress over the years. However, they lackedthe resources to fully electrify the villages in its service area. A call for help went out. NRECAInternational Foundation and the Georgia cooperatives answered the call, and helped bringreliable electrical power to more villages in Ixcan.One year later, NRECA and the Georgia volunteers returnedto Ixcan. They saw that the power of change waseverywhere...and it was astounding.The villagers, who once suffered high crime rates, nowenjoyed increased safety simply because the streets werelit at night. Students were using computers to connectto far away places and learn about technology.Mother and infant mortality rates droppedsignificantly because local health clinicscould now provide critical care whennecessary. Businesses had affordableand reliable energy to boost servicesand production. And homes oncelit solely by candlelight were nowilluminated by electricity.But change didn’t just come to Ixcan.It came to the volunteer linemen, too.“This trip changed my perspective on life.It was overwhelming,” said volunteer linemanErik Hansek from Greystone Power Corporation.Curtis Baker of Cowetta-Fayette EMC summedup the power of change: “Every lineman oughtto do something like this once in his career.”