I would like to share with you
some safety tips that typically are
s t o red away and usually forg o t t e n
about over the long, cold winter
season. Of course, I am happy to
say that last winter ended much
nicer than many others we have
had over the past few years.
The events of a mild winter
have not made many of us much
h a p p i e r, though. The advent of
higher prices at the gas pumps
and higher-than-usual cost
i n c r eases from our utility part n e r s
has made our budget very tight.
These seemingly higher- t h a n -
n o rmal rate increases have caused
an almost swirling cascade of
related consequences. Events
such as these make us opt for
a l t e r natives within our personal
l i v e s .
It was not too many years ago
that the re s u rgence of wood-
b u rning stoves became more evi-
dent in our lives. People began
p u rchasing wood burn e r s ,
k e ros ene heaters, pellet stoves
and many other alternative heat-
ing systems for their homes. Not
unlike times past, we are re t u rn-
ing to those alternatives today.
C o n s e q u e n t l y, these life-changing
events can cause us to put safety
aside. The specific savings that
a re realized by adding these older
versions of home heating sourc e s
comes with a price. Along with
this purported cost savings, come
many added safety pro b l e m s .
Many of these safety factors need
to be considered before making
p u rchases of this nature .
A wood burn e r, of any kind,
comes with extreme heat that
needs to be tempered to the sur-
roundings in which it is placed.
A d d i t i o n a l l y, the combustion cycle
of any fossil fuel heating system
needs to be vented to the outside
to prevent asphyxiation. If you
a re considering making purc h a s e s
such as these for next winter,
please remain cognizant of the
unsafe conditions they may cre-
ate, and be sure to have the new
equipment installed by an autho-
rized installer.
Because of the soaring prices of
natural gas, propane and oil, elec-
tricity has made a huge re s u r-
gence as a great source for heat-
ing your home. The higher- r a t e d
e fficiencies in heating perf o r-
mance for heat pumps, along with
these higher rates for gas and oil,
all make the clean electric systems
a great alternative. Likewise, the
level of safety in using electricity
for heating is unequaled by any
other alternative fuel source.
You never have to worry about
an explosion, venting of carbon
monoxide, sparks or the gre a s y
walls that come with combustion-
type fuels.
If you’re still not convinced as
to whether an all-electrically-
heated home is for you, consider
a Dual Fuel heating system that
p rovides both electric and other
types of fuel heating. The advan-
tages are realized through the
Dual Fuel alternative that two
s o u rces of heating provides, if
one utility has an unusually high-
er fuel charge than the other.
In closing, with the possibility
of another torrent storm season
ahead of us, be aware that
downed power lines that look safe
and appear to not be burning, are
NOT safe to touch. Please call us
first before jeopardizing your and
your family’s
l i v e s .
Safety tips that may save your life
w w w. h a r r i s o n r e a . c o m
Harrison Rural Electrification
Association, Inc.
RR 6, Box 502
Clarksburg, WV 26301-0502
3 0 4 - 6 2 4 - 6 3 6 5
Board of Directors
C.B. Sharp, Dist. 1.....................President
James Stuart, Dist. 4 ..........Vice President
Glenn Cox, Jr., Dist. 3............Secy.-Treas.
Greg Robertson .............................Dist. 2
Ron Watson...................................Dist. 5
James McMurtry............................Dist. 6
Michael Cross ...............................Dist. 7
________________
Gary L. Jackson, General Manager
Terry Stout ...................Office Manager
Alan Cox .................Operations Manager
Richard L. Fox................Staking Engineer
Nada McNemar .............................Editor
Office Hours
7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m., Mon. - Fri.
Manager’s
Corner
By
Gary Jackson,
CEO/General
Manager
Country Living/June 2006—25
BIRTHDAY GREETINGS!
This month’s birthday boy is Rob Davis. Rob is
one of our linemen and has been with the Coopera-
tive for 13 years. We’ll tell you more about Rob in
this month’s Employee Spotlight. Happy birthday,
Robbie and best wishes from all of us here at HREA!
26—Country Living/June 2006
Employee
Spotlight
This nationally-acclaimed Mountain Heritage
Arts and Crafts Festival is held yearly near Harp-
er’s Ferry. The Jefferson County Chamber of Com-
merce cordially invites all to
come and enjoy the festival in
the country where visitors can
unwind and relax as they stroll
among the colorful tents.
Approximately 200 crafters selected for the
high quality of their products will be selling and
demonstrating their wares. Some of the crafts
offered are baskets, clothing, folk art, dolls, dried
flowers, herbs, furniture, leather goods, pottery
and quilts, to name just a few. Many varieties of
foods are available along with the best in live
bluegrass music. The Patent Pending Band will
perform at this year’s festival on June 10 and 11.
The entrance fee includes parking and enter-
tainment. Adult admission
is $6, children ages 6 to 17
are admitted for $3 and
children under 6 are free.
The festival is open from 10 a.m. until 6 p.m.
For more information, contact the Jefferson
County Chamber of Commerce at 1-800-624-
0577, or go to www.jeffersoncounty.com where
you can print out an online coupon for $1 off reg-
ular admission price.
This event sounds like the perfect place to
spend quality time with family and friends.
Mountain Heritage Arts and Crafts Festival
This month’s employee spotlight is about
Robert Davis. Rob began working for Harrison
Rural Electric in April 1993, as an apprentice
lineman and has worked for your Cooperative
for the last 13 years.
Although Rob already was a Class B lineman,
he still had to complete the four-year Dennis
Merchant course, as all of our linemen do,
before qualifying to be a journeymen lineman
for the Co-op. Robbie was partnered with senior
lineman Paul Siders, and the majority of the
time Paul is who he works with.
Rob graduated from Liberty High School
where he lettered in football and wrestling.
Always a sports enthusiast, Robbie actually met
his wife, the former Betty Post, on the softball
field. Rob and Betty have been married for 11
years and have two daughters — 9-year-old
Sierra and Kaylee, age 6. They reside in Bassell
Addition off of St. Rte. 25. Other members of
the family living there are two beautiful golden
retrievers, Sugar and Bella. Rob and his family
attend Immaculate Conception Church in
Clarksburg.
Robbie is a member of the Masons, and in
his spare time he likes to snow ski, hunt, fish
and play pool.
Robbie is a hard-worker and has proved to
be a great asset to your Cooperative. He has
traveled to other states on more than one occa-
sion to assist with storm damage repairs, most
recently working in Louisiana after Hurricane
Rita swept through.
As testimony to Rob’s qualifications and
work ethic, former CEO George Carter, upon his
departure, told Rob that if he ever needed a job,
he would hire him “in a heartbeat.”
One thing for sure, Robbie is and will contin-
ue to be dedicated to his job here at the Cooper-
ative and to you — our member/owners.
Robbie Davis
JUNE 9-11
Big Brothers/Big Sisters of North Central West
Virginia, Inc. serves Preston, Harrison, Monon-
galia, Lewis, Marion and Upshur counties and
considers itself the nation’s preeminent youth-
service organization. Its service is based on vol-
unteers, and it has proven success
in creating and nurturing positive
relationships that benefit, not only
the volunteer, but also the child, the
child’s family and the community in
general.
The mission of Big Brothers/Big
Sisters is to serve children living in
single-parent families by providing
one-to-one friendship with caring
adult volunteers.
On April 22, State Farm agent
Bob Burdette hosted “Bowl for Kids’
Sake” at Suburban Lanes in Mor-
gantown benefiting Big
Brothers/Big Sisters of North Cen-
tral WV. Pizza, soft drinks, t-shirts
and door prizes were provided at this fun event.
Since Big Brothers/Big Sisters receives no govern-
ment subsidies and is a nonprofit organization, it
relies solely on foundations, individual donations
and corporate sponsors in order to fulfill its mis-
sion.
When HREA was invited to participate in this
worthwhile event, several employees of your
Cooperative volunteered to form a bowling team
and take part in the festivities. Each employee
had to raise a minimum of $25.
Those employees who donated their time that
Saturday were CEO Gary Jackson and his wife,
Judy, Billing Clerk Missie Stephenson, Reception-
ist April Greathouse and Bookkeeper Debbie
Yerkey. Their team was affectionately named the
“Gutterball Crew.”
Gary and Missie bowled a fairly decent game,
but April’s, Debbie’s and Judy’s scores were just a
little on the low side. On the plus side, however,
these Gutterball dynamos managed to keep their
bowling balls in their own lane, did not drop the
ball on anyone’s foot and caused no injury to
those in nearby lanes. Most importantly, however,
everyone had a good time and helped out a
worthwhile organization in the process.
For more information about Big Brothers/Big
Sisters of North Central WV, direct correspondence
to: 500 Mylan Park Lane, Suite 2, Morgantown,
WV 26501, or call 304-983-2283. Kurt Schmidt
is executive director, and his extension is 104;
and Kendra Evans is case manager, and her
extension is 103.
HREA team bowls for Big Brothers/Big Sisters
Country Living/June 2006—27
Gary Jackson, Judy Jackson and Debbie Yerkey
Debbie Yerkey keeps ball out of gutter.
28—Country Living/June 2006
Right from the start, eastern and western Vi rg i n i a
w e r e divided in many ways. This division became
m o r e pronounced through the years until the single
entity became two separate states.
To begin with, the Vi rginia State Constitution,
adopted in 1776, reflected the interest of eastern Vi r-
ginia and discriminated against the emerging class of
small land owners in western Vi r ginia, because only
white males owning at least 25 acres of improved or
50 acres of unimproved land were permitted to vote.
Many western Vi r ginians did not own the land on
which they lived — there f o re, they were not perm i t t e d
to vote. The constitution also delegated a dispro p o r-
tionate re p resentation in the state General Assembly
by allowing only two delegates per county, re g a rd l e s s
of population. On the other side of the coin, the
a p p o r tionment of the Senate was based on total popu-
lation, including slaves. The large slave population of
e a s t e r n Vi rginia and the general absence of slaves in
w e s t e rn Vi rginia created re p resentation that favore d
the East. The Vi rginia General Assembly did pass a
number of acts in an attempt to benefit western Vi r-
ginia, but these failed to produce any long-term
answers.
In response to a re f e rendum, a convention gath-
e r ed in Richmond attended by such prominent Vi r-
ginians as James Madison, James Monroe and John
Ty l e r. They attempted to develop a new constitution,
but eastern Vi r ginian conservatives defeated virt u a l l y
e v e ry major re f o rm. Calls for secession began imme-
diately and continued for the next 20 years, even
though western Vi r ginia was finally granted gre a t e r
re p res entation with the organization of 19 new coun-
t i e s .
In 1831, the issue of African-Americans came to
the fore f ront. A national organized movement called
abolitionism began in an eff o rt to end slavery. Many
p r ominent western Vi rginia political leaders support e d
abolitionism because they felt slaves were perf o rm i n g
jobs which white laborers should be paid to do.
In 1861, when Vi rginia voted to secede from the
Union, western delegates led by Clarksburg ’s John S.
Carlisle marched out of the secession convention and
vowed to form a state government loyal to the Union.
On October 24, 1861, residents of 39 counties in
w e s t e rn Vi rginia approved the formation of a new
Unionist state.
At the Constitutional Convention held in Wheeling,
delegates selected counties for inclusion in the new
state of West Vi r ginia. In the end, 50 counties were
selected (all of present-day West Vi r g i n i a ’s counties
except Mineral, Grant, Lincoln, Summers and Mingo,
which were formed after statehood).
The mountain range west of the Blue Ridge became
the eastern border of West Vi rginia to provide a
defense against Confederate invasion. The Baltimore
and Ohio railroad ran through the eastern panhandle
and was extremely important for the economy and
t r oop movements. Inclusion of these counties
removed all of the railroad from the Confederacy.
On March 26, 1863, the citizens of the original 50
counties approved the statehood bill, and on June 20,
1863, the state of West Vi rginia officially was created.
For more information about our beautiful state,
visit w w w . w v c u l t u r e . o rg / h i s t o ry.
West Virginia became a state on June 20, 1863
but it wasn’t easy....
Still confused about
Medicare, Part D?
Are you a senior citizen with Medicare coverage
and still have not selected the prescription drug cov-
erage that’s right for you? Does the whole thing con-
fuse you until you just don’t want to bother with it?
Well, you are entitled to this coverage, and with
rising prescription costs, most seniors could use a lit-
tle help. Fortunately, there is an organization that
can help you choose the drug coverage that will be
most cost effective for your individual needs.
Contact Libby or Tammy at the Harrison County
Senior Center located at 500 West Main Street in
Clarksburg. The phone number is 623-6795. These
ladies can answer any questions you may have and
actually can enroll you right there at the center with
whatever company you choose to go with.
Happy Fathers’ Day to all
of the HREA
dads!
Gary Jackson, father of Keith; Rick Fox, father
of H.R., Stephen and Troy; Harold Gains, father of
Jamie; Terry Stout, father of Alaina, Ben and Joce-
lyn; Alan Cox, father of Angie and Melanie; John
Holt, father of Alicia; Paul Siders, father of Stuart
and Tiffany; Ron Yerkey, father of Kayla and
Justin; Scott Wyckoff, father of Heather; Rob
Davis, father of Sierra and Kaylee; Jon Paul McAl-
lister, father of Ryan, Allison and Abigail; Sean
Bailey, father of Eli; Chris Davisson, father of
Emily; and Bill Curran, father of B.J. and Carla.
