An enduring trait in the electric cooperative network are the tight bonds formed between employees that can last a lifetime. Oftentimes, employees at all levels talk fondly about the “co-op family.”

That sense of family is quite literal for a pair of co-op CEOs in Oklahoma. Juli Orme, general manager of Cookson Hill Electric Cooperative, and her husband Brett Orme, CEO of Kiamichi Electric Cooperative, will be celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary this year.

Brett Orme, who’s been CEO since 2016, and Juli Orme, who’s been in her role since 2018, said they aren’t aware of any other married couples leading co-ops, and neither is Gary Pfann, NRECA director of staff and education.

Introduced by a mutual friend, the Ormes have worked at co-ops in varying capacities during their marriage. And for a four-year period (2012-2016), they both worked at Stigler-based Cookson Hills EC, where she was chief financial officer and he was director of engineering.

Stigler is the couple’s home base, about 45 miles from Wilburton, where Kiamichi EC is based. And because the couple’s three children attended Stigler schools, they decided to stay there when Brett became CEO of Kiamichi EC. As a result, he commutes 90 miles roundtrip for work.

It also meant that Juli Orme did the bulk of the “running around” after their children, now living on their own, with the youngest in her sophomore year at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater. But if a sporting event or other school activity interfered with her job, Brett took over.

“It’s been easier for just one of us commuting, as opposed to both of us,” Juli Orme said. “Everything we do is here in Stigler. He's on the school board here, and we attend church here where we serve on the worship team. He’s the drummer and I’m the keyboardist.”

The Ormes acknowledged their jobs’ high stress levels but said their shared experiences as co-op executives relieve some of that pressure. They both regard each other as in-house sounding boards.

Juli Orme said her husband was particularly helpful during her early days on the job.

“When I first entered into this leadership role, I discovered quickly it was very different from being a CFO,” she said. “The buck stops with you as the CEO. When I was feeling a little bit overwhelmed, I would ask him, ‘Hey, what do you think about this?’ And sometimes we’ll run through scenarios together.”

Of course, they don’t share proprietary information, and “I don’t always take her advice, and she doesn’t always take my advice,” Brett Orme said. “We have to do what’s best for each of our co-ops, but it’s good to have a different perspective and a different set of eyes.”