[image-caption title="Morgan%20Melton%20enjoys%20a%20day%20on%20the%20snow%20in%20Alaska%2C%20where%20a%20lifelong%20love%20of%20the%20outdoors%20helps%20shape%20her%20work%20as%20chief%20communications%20officer%20at%20Copper%20Valley%20Electric%20Association.%20(Photo%20Courtesy%3A%20Morgan%20Melton)" description="%20%20" image="%2Fremagazine%2Farticles%2FPublishingImages%2F0926-spotlight-MMelton-Sugarloaf.jpg" /]
What types of outdoor recreation activities do you participate in? And when did you get started?
I grew up in Palmer, Alaska, and had a childhood filled with backcountry and cross-country skiing, hiking, backpacking and sea kayaking. Today, living in Valdez, Alaska, my husband and I love to ski, run, bike, backpack, hike and fish with our three dogs: Bear, Bozeman and Tulla.
What drew you to your current role as chief communications officer?
I love the combination of academic writing and creative, fun organization that is required. I genuinely enjoy writing our annual legislative brochure and press releases, and I enjoy the creative process of planning our annual events during Cooperative Month in October and our Annual Meeting of Members in May.
What has surprised you most about the job so far?
I have been pleasantly surprised how much our small communities care about their electric cooperative, the work we do daily, and the gratitude towars our team members who work hard to keep the lights on. It is fun to see the community engagement on our social media, in the offices and at our events.
What do you like most about working for an electric co-op?
I love the family-friendly atmosphere and teamwork mentality that Copper Valley Electric has. This co-op has a culture that has fostered kindness, teamwork and a desire to complete our work with excellence. Our team also genuinely cares about the membership we serve because we are part of such a small, close-knit community; for the most part, we know each and every one of our members and we want to take care of them by providing reliable and affordable power. Overall, our team is proud to work for Copper Valley Electric, which makes it an extremely fun, positive work environment!
What are some unique challenges faced by such a rural co-op and how do you and CVEA work to overcome them for your members?
Copper Valley Electric has roughly 540 miles of distribution and transmission lines with approximately 7,000 poles and structures we maintain. Our service territory is about the size of West Virginia, and we provide electrical service to roughly 2,800 commercial and residential members. Our districts experience extremely low temperatures—as cold as minus-50 degrees Fahrenheit in the Copper Basin district, with more than 400 inches of snowfall annually in the Valdez district. Our team is guided by our strategic plan that was established in 2021, and it is to: Be the Employer of Choice, Build Financial Strength, Maintain and Improve System Reliability, and Reduce Dependence on Diesel Fuel. One example of how CVEA has worked to overcome our unique rural challenges is the range of maintenance efforts across the operations and power generation departments, and an aggressive right-of-way clearing program. Our system reliability is measured by outage hours, and it reached its lowest level in over 15 years in 2025.
How does your love for the outdoors impact your work at CVEA? Any lessons that seem to translate really well?
All outdoor adventures, depending on the length and difficulty, require some level of planning. I think a lifetime of packing for backpacking trips and thinking ahead about food and water supplies over multiple days, safety and shelter equipment, and changes of clothing translates to my day-to-day work frequently. Similar to backpacking or even a day of backcountry skiing in Thompson Pass, both these adventure examples and my daily work require pre-planning. I implement pre-planning with every event that I plan for our cooperative.
Tell us about one of your favorite moments outdoors.
My husband and I backpacked Kesugi Ridge outside of Denali National Park in June 2024 and it was an incredible adventure. It was one of those picture-perfect Alaska postcard weekends where there were blue, cloudless skies, a slight breeze to keep the bugs away, and unimpeded views of Mt. McKinley for 35 miles.
Have you learned anything recently that's really stuck with you?
I recently read a book called “The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry" by John Mark Comer. One of the nuggets of wisdom that stuck out while reading this book was that rushing does not make you more efficient. Since I read this, I try to approach my full schedule and daily to-do list one task at a time and to see it through to completion to the best of my ability rather than rushing to get each item checked off the list as fast as possible. I have found that my to-do lists get done quicker, with less mistakes and revisions, and I smile a lot more while doing them because when I stop rushing, I do not feel the weight of anxiety or stress but instead am able to enjoy my work and the process of doing it.
Advice for other new co-op employees?
I would implement the practice of daily writing down or sharing with a co-worker, family member, or friend three items you are grateful for daily. Those of us that have careers in a co-op are lucky to be part of a family-friendly, team-oriented organization with healthcare and retirement benefits, a pension and a salary. My gratitude for having a job with this electric utility cooperative grows daily!
