It’s the most wonderful time of the year, and electric cooperatives' community spirit tends to shine the brightest when the holidays are upon us.

In Utah, one co-op made a big statement with an 80-foot digital Christmas tree with 7,500 lights that also doubled as a collection point for its Energize the Holidays fund. Elsewhere, co-op employees and directors dug deep in their own pockets to provide toys and food to those facing financial hardship. And from Arizona to the snowy Midwest, co-ops showed impressive creativity with festive floats.

We hope this special, super-sized edition of Bright Spots brings cooperative.com readers an extra dose of joy and inspiration this holiday season. Season’s greetings, and best wishes for a safe and happy 2026!

Dixie Power is bringing holiday magic to southern Utah with an 80-foot tall digital tree with animated light shows synchronized to Christmas music that drivers can tune into on their FM radios. Can you see Santa arriving in the bucket?

Fourteen inches of snow canceled the outdoor portion of Franklin REC’s annual Light Up the Night! Celebration, but a Christmas tree decorated by employees before the event still shines brightly. Co-op employees found ways to make the annual tradition special with an online voting contest for floats as well as arts and crafts and hot cocoa at its Hampton, Iowa, office.

Each holiday season, employees and directors of West Central Electric Cooperative in Higginsville, Missouri, identify local charities in need of extra help and personally donate. This year, the co-op raised $900 for several food pantries, where demand has soared lately. The co-op’s Heather Hoflander says, “We are a smaller cooperative, but we like to give big!”

Each year, Nodak Electric Cooperative gives a helping hand to neighbors facing food insecurity with the Spirit Lake Food Drive, founded by several employees. The initiative met its goal this year with a full truckload of shelf-stable food items for the Spirit Lake Food Distribution Center in Fort Totten, North Dakota.

Employees at Lumbee River EMC wrap gifts donated to the co-op’s annual Christmas Care program, which provides $60 vouchers to more than 150 local families for groceries and holiday staples as well as toys for children.

This holiday season, Wheatland Electric Cooperative employees and trustees sponsored nearly 100 children in foster care through Saint Francis Ministries’ Christmas for Kids program in Salina, Kansas, with a $1,000 Sharing Success grant and donations of toys and gifts.

Each year, children and grandchildren of Salem Electric Cooperative employees submit artwork for the holidays, which is then shared by the Oregon co-op on its social media platforms. Employees create clever captions and run them all December. Each child gets a thank-you note and a Dairy Queen gift card.

In Rockwall, Texas, Rayburn Electric Cooperative is spreading holiday cheer with toys for children in need. Jeff Skinner, the coordinator of the co-op’s Charitable Contributions Team, presented a check for $1,000 to Rockwall Toys for Tots, the charity selected by co-op employees.

In Wisconsin, Polk-Burnett Electric Cooperative just finished its 18th annual holiday gift drive to benefit children in Polk and Burnett counties. Employees, including those at the Centuria headquarters pictured above, collected clothing items and toys later distributed by Operation Christmas and Interfaith Caregivers Christmas for Kids.

How many does it take to cut down and set up a Christmas tree in the town square? For the past seven to10 years, Cuming County Public Power District, the Dodge, Nebraska, maintenance department and an agriservices company work out the logistics. After placing and lighting the tree, crews decorate light poles up and down the main street.

Warm blankets are a must in snowy, cold Ohio. The member service team at South Central Power Co.’s Barnesville, Ohio, district office made fleece blankets and delivered them to to residents of a senior home in Woodsfield.

In Ohio, Guernsey-Muskingum Electric Cooperative’s holiday float in the New Concord Village Christmas Parade featured special guests from local schools. A co-op employee and coach of his daughter’s third-grade basketball team brought the entire squad, and several students from a power line tech program at a local trade school also joined the fun.

Nothing warms up winter like a firepit and s’mores. The accoutrements were the crowning touch of a custom light display designed by Minnesota Valley Electric Cooperative, a longtime sponsor of the University of Minnesota’s Landscape Arboretum. With matching funds from Basic Electric Power Cooperative, co-op lineworkers built a three-phase power line using LED rope lights.

Poudre Valley REA members visit with Santa at the Colorado co-op’s Fort Collins headquarters. Each year the co-op invites members to “Pictures and Pies @ PVREA” to ring in the holidays with hot chocolate, face time with Santa, a seasonal light display and pies from a local bakery. This year, about 250 pies were given away.

In northern Wisconsin, Ladysmith Winter Magic was the place to be earlier this month, where Jump River Electric Cooperative joined other businesses to celebrate the season. Co-op employees wrapped a work truck in lights, buckled in Frosty for the festive parade, and distributed candy and co-op swag.

In Vincennes, Indiana, WIN Energy REMC employees and their families take part in the city’s 27th annual Christmas Parade of Lights. Willie Wiredhand also came along for the ride.

“Favorite Christmas Movies” was the theme of this year’s parade in downtown Jasper, Georgia, and Amicalola EMC’s Polar Express float met that challenge head on. Building and Grounds Supervisor Keith Chastain’s team began the project months ago with spare lumber and a recycled wire reel. An attached right-of-way chip truck and a trailer transformed the materials into the co-op’s very own passenger car. Puffs of smoke, artificial snow and a soundtrack from the iconic film completed the look.

The Polar Express was a popular co-op float theme this holiday season. In the Tulia, Texas, Christmas Parade, Swisher Electric Cooperative boasted its own version of the train from the beloved children’s book and movie.

Willie Wiredhand joined employees at Oregon Trail Electric Cooperative in Baker City for the city’s annual Twilight Jubilee Parade. The co-op’s operations crew built the float, the marketing and community events staff decorated it, and other employees gave a helping hand.

Lack of snow and a small team didn’t deter Wyoming’s Garland Light & Power Co. from showing its holiday spirit during this year’s ChristmasFest 2025 in Powell. The smallest co-op in the state decked out a sparkly bucket for the event.

Amid the beautiful White Mountains in Arizona, Navopache Electric Cooperative looks forward to participating in the annual Show Low Shines Christmas Light Parade down the town’s main street. Employees deck out a truck and enjoy the festivities with their families.

“Christmas Aglow” was the theme for this year’s Sedalia Area Chamber of Commerce Christmas Parade, which featured a float from Central Missouri Electric Cooperative. Built several years ago and reused each season, the co-op’s float consists of a custom-built three-phase power line with three poles. Cardboard Christmas scenes painted with glow-in-the-dark paint and UV lights complete the look.

Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative has sponsored and participated in the Magical Night Lighted Parade in Kearney, Missouri, for the last six years. This year's entry had Santa and his reindeer set to launch from the boom of a bucket truck.

At Eastern Illini Electric Cooperative, what’s old is new again. This year, employees at the Paxton-based co-op refurbished and decked out a 1950s power pole digger truck to display at the headquarters building. The Christmas tree behind the truck is made of antique ceramic porcelain insulators.

Grayson RECC has been busy this holiday season, participating in three parades in its Grayson, Kentucky, service area—and sweeping first place in all of them. A fitting honor, this float won first place in a chamber of commerce parade for “best use of lights” category. Prize winnings in an earlier parade bought more candy for bystanders.

Great River Energy employees Justin and Janeen Wolfsteller deliver Thanksgiving turkeys to Passing the Bread, a monthly food distribution event in Zimmerman, Minnesota. Funds for the turkeys came from a $250,000 donation to 26 food pantries from the generation and transmission cooperative to provide relief to those affected by the federal government shutdown in the weeks leading up to Thanksgiving.

In Florida, a bucket truck from Escambia River Electric Cooperative rides proudly in the Town of Century’s Christmas Parade.

In Mississippi, Singing River Electric Cooperative employees and their families share a ride with Santa during the Greene County Christmas Parade.

Bright Spots will continue in its regular format next month. If you have a Bright Spot you’d like to share, please send your news and photos with Victoria Rocha and Katie Allen.  Check out previous editions below: