Cherries

Co-op Governance

Cooperatives are member-owned and member-governed. You elect our Board of Directors and they manage the business affairs of our cooperative.

Board Elections

Every spring, you can vote in our Board of Directors election… or even run in it! Check out these frequently asked questions about our elections.

The voting period for the board election begins May 1 and runs through our Annual Meeting in June. During the Annual Meeting, the Election and Credentials Committee performs the final vote tally and the winners are announced.

Get more 2025 election information here.

You can vote in one of three ways: online, by mail, or in-person. In-person voting occurs only at the co-op’s Annual Meeting. Voting instructions are sent to members in May.

The nominating period is the first day of March through 4pm on the last business day of March. All nominees must meet the director qualifications set forth by the Cherryland bylaws. Cherryland’s membership elects directors to serve three-year terms. Review our Board Candidate Information Packet for more information. If you’re interested in becoming a board candidate, complete our Board Candidate Interest Form.

The results of the last board election can be found here.

Yes, however, there are rules they must follow if they want to send you campaign information:

  1. Candidates can send campaign mailers and/or one (1) email to the membership (or a subsection of the membership).
  2. Candidates, under no circumstances, are allowed to have access to our membership list.
  3. Candidates must use a co-op-designated third-party to administer and send their communications. This third party must agree to our strict privacy data rules. Once a candidate communication is sent, the co-op-designated third party must destroy our membership list.
  4. Candidates, obviously, have to pay for their own campaign communications.
Meet the 2025 candidates
2025 Election Details
two people voting
View Annual Report

Check Out Our Annual Report

View the board president's annual message, co-op financial report, director information and compensation, candidate profiles, and more.
View Annual Report

Director Duties & Responsibilities

The board of directors is the governing body of the co-op and is responsible for establishing policies, providing strategic direction, hiring and evaluating the general manager, providing for a plan of succession, and overseeing all major corporate decisions. It has a fiduciary responsibility to represent the members of the co-op as provided for in state law and our bylaws. To accomplish this, the board must structure itself so that it has the knowledge and skills to carry out its duties in a manner that is efficient and cost-effective.

Meet Your Board of Directors

Gabe Schneider

Grand Traverse/Kalkaska
President
(517) 449-6453
[email protected]

View Bio >

Valarie Handy

Benzie/Manistee/Wexford
Vice President
(231)492-4705
[email protected]

View Bio >

Melinda Lautner

Director at Large
Secretary
(231) 947-2509
[email protected]

View Bio >

Tom Van Pelt

Leelanau
Treasurer
(231) 386-5234
[email protected]

View Bio >

David Schweitzer

Director at Large
(231) 883-5860
[email protected]

View Bio >

Terry Lautner

Director at Large
(231) 883-6455
[email protected]

View Bio >

Dean Adams

Director at Large
(231) 642-0014
[email protected]

View Bio >

Rachel Johnson

CEO
(231) 486-9275
[email protected]

Serve on the Board

Cherryland’s membership elects directors to serve a three-year term. All qualified members are encouraged to consider serving. The nominating period is in March. All nominees must meet the director qualifications set forth by the Cherryland bylaws. Review our Board Candidate Information Packet for more information. If you’re interested in becoming a board candidate, complete our Board Candidate Interest Form.

Complete Board Candidate Interest Form

Give Feedback

Members are encouraged to provide input directly to the Board by email phone, or in-person during member input sessions.  To have your comments included in a monthly board packet for review, please submit them to Shannon Beery at [email protected] a minimum of three business days before the monthly board meeting.

View Upcoming Board Meetings

Cherryland's Bylaws

Our bylaws are the guidelines for our operation and management. They provide the framework for co-op governance, including director eligibility, responsibilities, and conduct. As a member-regulated utility, Cherryland operates under board-approved rules, regulations and rates.

View Bylaws

Meeting Agendas and Minutes

Before the board meets each month, the co-op posts an agenda for the upcoming meeting. After every board meeting, the co-op provides a summary of what happened. You can find up to date agendas and meeting minutes here on our website. We also provide highlights from each board meeting in our co-op magazine, Michigan Country Lines.

View Meeting Minutes

Cherryland’s Co-op Acadamy 

Co-ops belong to the communities they serve. That’s why we wanted to create a program to engage with and educate our community’s up-and-comers about their electric cooperative.

Cherryland’s Co-op Academy program gives budding community leaders a baseline understanding of the cooperative and the role of the board of directors. Over the course of three sessions, participants learn about…

  • Co-op basics
  • Distribution system operations
  • Co-op financials
  • Industry challenges and opportunities

If you’re interested in learning more or getting more engaged in your co-op, fill out our Co-op Academy interest form or contact Courtney Doyle at [email protected]

Co-op Academy Interest Form