LATEST NEWS

On May 28, 2025, Sho-Me Power Electric Cooperative held its Annual Meeting of the Membership in Branson, Missouri. The event welcomed a full house, reflecting strong engagement and interest from the Cooperative’s members. Jason Marshall, CEO and General Manager, opened the evening with an overview of the Cooperative’s newly implemented Strategic Plan, which was reviewed and approved by the Board of Directors earlier that month.

Sho-Me Power Electric Cooperative proudly hosted the 2025 Missouri Electric Cooperatives Capitol Fish Fry on April 23rd, at the State Capitol in Jefferson City. As one of the most anticipated events of the legislative session, the fish fry brings together state lawmakers, cooperative leaders, and industry partners to foster relationships and advocate for issues impacting rural electric cooperatives. Sho-Me Power served up more than 620 pounds of fried fish for legislators, state officials, and members of the public, creating a welcoming environment for meaningful conversations about energy policy, infrastructure, and the future of Missouri’s electric grid. The event showcased Sho-Me Power’s leadership in the cooperative community and its ongoing commitment to serving rural Missouri through partnership, advocacy, and community engagement.

In mid‑March 2025, tornadoes swept through the southern Ozarks, striking southeastern Ozark County and moving northeast toward West Plains and Oregon County. The storms inflicted heavy damage on the Sho‑Me Power system—three Sho‑Me substations were directly hit, with both high-voltage transmission lines and main feeder lines sustaining significant harm. More than 400 utility poles were snapped or fell, leading to prolonged outages affecting over 6,300 members through the weekend. Restoration crews, supported by mutual‑aid linemen from across Missouri and Arkansas, worked tirelessly until full service was restored by the evening of Friday, March 21, 2025. The cooperative later reflected, “What the cooperative built over time; Mother Nature destroyed in seconds,” emphasizing both the scale of the damage and the resilience of their restoration teams.

In early January 2025, Marshfield and the surrounding Ozarks were hit by "Winter Storm Blair," which delivered 6–8 inches of heavy snow, sleet, and freezing rain—leading to treacherous travel conditions and widespread disruptions. The storm brought down trees and power lines, causing outages across the region as local electric co-ops, including Sho-Me Power, mobilized crews—alongside mutual-aid teams—to begin restoration efforts. With roads coated in ice and snow, officials urged residents to stay home unless travel was absolutely necessary. Warming centers opened to support vulnerable community members, and emergency services worked around the clock to ensure public safety. During severe ice storms like this, the public is encouraged to prepare by stocking emergency supplies, avoiding downed power lines, limiting travel, and staying informed through official updates. Taking these precautions can help avoid injury, reduce strain on emergency services, and ensure families remain safe and warm until conditions improve.

Sho-Me Power is pleased to announce the appointment of Jason Marshall as its new Chief Executive Officer (CEO)/General Manager.  Mr. Marshall will be succeeding current CEO/General Manager John Richards who has held the position since March 2016. He is coming to us from Wabash Valley Power in Indianapolis, IN. With a proven track record of developing and managing electric transmission systems, Mr. Marshall brings a wealth of experience and expertise that will undoubtedly continue Sho-Me’s mission of providing safe, reliable, low-cost power and telecommunication services. “I am truly honored that I have been chosen by the board of directors to join the exceptional team at Sho-Me as their CEO and General Manager,” said Jason Marshall. “Sho-Me Power has been established as a leader over the past 81 years in providing low-cost wholesale power to the nine distribution cooperatives it serves. I am excited to be part of the team helping deliver not only reliable power to over 170,000 members at the end of the line, but also leading-edge telecommunication services to a large part of Missouri. My family and I are excited about this next chapter in our lives.”

On May 31^st, Sho-Me Power Electric Cooperative held its 2023 Annual Meeting of the Membership in Branson, Missouri. The meeting began at 3:00 PM and the afternoon was filled with informative presentations by Associated Electric Cooperative senior staff. Topics covered by AECI in their update were Ensuring Reliable Generation, Serving Members Through Extreme Conditions, Planning for an Uncertain Future, Building Now for the Future, Ensuring Financial Strength, and The Regulatory Future. Presentations were made to retiring board members James Cottrell and Marc Roecker, and a special recognition was made to General Manager John Richards, who will be retiring at the end of the year after 48 years of service.

Crowds turned out in droves for the return of the Local Electric Cooperative Fish Fry at the Missouri Capitol. After a hiatus in 2020 and 2021, the 19th annual event brought hungry visitors to the south lawn for fried catfish and all the fixins. Missouri G&T’s did an outstanding job organizing the event and the World Famous Sho-Me Fish Fry Team once again served up outstanding fish and hush puppies. Everyone in the Capitol expressed their appreciation for the great food and stellar service provided by the Missouri Electric Cooperative family. Thank you to everyone who made the return of this important event not only a possibility but also a success.

On October 25, 2021,  students from 3^rd, 4^th, and 5^th grade at Swedeborg elementary school were able to attend Gascosage Electric’s  first “Camp Co-op”.  The campers were able to learn about several things throughout the day including renewable energy sources, electric vehicles, and drone usage in the electrical industry.  They were even able to see live demonstrations of a pole being set, right of way crews working, and a pole-top rescue.  Sho-Me was happy to assist in “Camp Co-op” and we look forward to future camps with all of our member cooperatives.

On August, 28^th, 2021 Hurricane Ida made landfall wreaking havoc on the DEMCO electric system near Baton Rouge, Louisiana.  On August, 31^st Sho-Me dispatched a crew of  6 linemen to the area  to assist in the restoration efforts. At the peak of the outage, 95% of DEMCO’s members were without power.  Sho-Me Crews Spent two weeks in Louisiana alongside other Co-op’s rebuilding the miles of destroyed transmission lines, demonstrating both concern for community and cooperation among cooperatives, two of the seven cooperative principals.

Sho-Me Power is currently in the process of constructing a third addition to our headquarters located in Marshfield, MO.  The new building will be two stories and approximately 11,500 square feet.  The building will include additional office space along with a new operations center.  Construction is scheduled to be completed by January 2021 and the facility fully operational by March.  The new facility will allow Sho-Me to better ensure the safety and reliability of the power system for our members.