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December 20, 2023

News

Marty Vineyard Receives Award

Marty Vineyard, a retired employee of SEMO Electric Cooperative, Sikeston, was honored with the A.C. Burrows Award by the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives (AMEC) at that organization’s annual meeting in Branson.

The purpose of the award is to recognize directors and employees of electric cooperatives for outstanding service to their cooperative, community and service areas. Those who received the award were selected because of their leadership above and beyond the call of duty to strengthen and improve the economic and social conditions in their areas.

Marty began his career in the electric industry at the age of 18 as a dispatcher for Ozark Border Electric Cooperative (OBEC). Two years later he became a warehouseman for OBEC. By 1980 he had transitioned to apprentice lineman, where he worked his way up to journeyman lineman, crew foreman and service foreman. He remained a lineman for the next 18 years until 1998, when OBEC appointed Marty operations coordinator, a position he held until he left in 2000 to work for Florida Power & Light. In 2002 Marty returned to southeast Missouri to begin his career at SEMO Electric Cooperative as a journeyman lineman. Within one year, he advanced to line superintendent. In 2004 he became manager of operations and eventually senior manager of operations overseeing several departments until his retirement in December 2022. Marty spent several years on the AMEC Risk Management Training and Planning Committee helping update AMEC’s safety manual. Ultimately, the safety of his team was Marty’s top priority.

The award is named for the late Audrian Cleon Burrows of Van Buren, Mo., who rose through the ranks to become general manager of the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives, which is the statewide service organization for Missouri’s 48 electric cooperatives. Burrows served in this position from 1968 to 1976. He was recognized as an outstanding leader in rural electrification and as a distinguished individual who dedicated his life to helping others.

The Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives, Jefferson City, is the statewide service organization for Missouri’s electric cooperatives.

Marty Vineyard accepts the A.C. Burrows Award with SEMO Electric Cooperative's Board of Directors and staff during the Association of Missouri Electric Cooperatives' annual meeting. The award is named for the late Audrian Cleon Burrows of Van Buren. Photo: (left to right) SEMO Electric Cooperative’s Director Carl Eftink, Director Von Priggel, Director James Deneke, Director Myron Hawes, Director Tim Coppage, Director Field LaPlant, Director Keith Haynes, Debbie Vineyard, Team SEMO’s Chris Freed, Marty Vineyard, Team SEMO’s Angie Byford, Team SEMO’s Jared Kelley, Director Dicky Hanor, Director John Bledsoe, Director Carla Moore, Team SEMO’s Ben Campbell, Director Dennis Fowler, and Team SEMO’s Sean Vanslyke.