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CFC District 6 Director Brad Schardin presented checks from CFC and NCSC to the South Dakota Rural Electric Association (SDREA) at its summer board meeting, held June 25-26 in Pierre, South Dakota.
Schardin, general manager at Southeastern Electric Cooperative in South Dakota, noted that CFC is continuing to support its electric cooperative members “whenever they need it,” even during these unprecedented times.
One of the important ways CFC continues to support its members, he said, is through its management of the Cooperative System Integrity Fund, which was created in 1986 to defend electric cooperative service territories. Schardin noted that the Integrity Fund has awarded more than $29 million in grants to electric cooperatives to date, including $339,000 to 11 electric cooperatives in South Dakota.
CFC also supports members through the Educational Fund, which was founded in 1981 to provide grants to assist in promoting cooperative principles. Schardin noted that CFC has allocated nearly $14 million to statewide associations to date—with $387,600 allocated to South Dakota alone.
In addition, since 2009, NCSC has allocated more than $863,000 for youth programs to foster an awareness of the cooperative business model.
Schardin presented checks from CFC and NCSC for a combined total of $18,000, which will be used to support programs like the Rural Electric Youth Tour.
