MEA board member resigns

PALMER -- After 10 years of service, one of Matanuska Electric Association's longest-running board members resigned from his seat Monday.

The MEA board met Monday to certify the April 5 election and administer the oath of office to board members Lois Lester and Bill Folsom, who won their bids for reelection in the 2003 annual election. At the meeting, Palmer resident and former president of Hermon Brothers Construction James Hermon told the board during his comments he had two items he wanted them to consider.

"I resign effective immediately," Hermon said, "and I ask that this board appoint Lee Jordan to take my place."

Jordan served recently as the chairman of MEA's Bylaws Committee, which developed the changes to MEA's bylaws pertaining to campaign disclosure and conflicts of interest. Jordan was one of four candidates in the recent board election, and took third place with 4,009 votes.

"Lee is an honest, capable guy who will do fine for our members," Hermon told the board.

Hermon, speaking from his home Wednesday, said he resigned for health reasons. Fighting cancer, he said, has been hard and, although he has enjoyed his service on the board, he decided to use his energy elsewhere.

"I just wanted a few more days to do the things I want to do," Hermon said.

Hermon, along with five brothers, started Hermon Brothers Construction in 1952 and have been involved in numerous projects around the Valley, including several ballparks in the Palmer area and the football field on which the Palmer Moose now play.

"We were about the only ones with any equipment," Hermon said.

The Mat-Su Miners' home field is named in honor of the family's contributions, and it sits in the midst of an area Hermon knows well.

"I moved that fair down to where it's at now," Hermon said. "We gave the property to the pioneers -- to the state of Alaska for zero money. They thought that was a nice gesture."

At Monday's meeting, Hermon said he enjoyed every bit of his time on the MEA board, although Wednesday he noted that it was not all easy.

"We had some awful times, trying to keep the opposition away," Hermon said. He was on the board that searched out and hired General Manager Wayne Carmony, and Hermon said he voted to hire him. At the meeting, Hermon said he hopes for a smoother road ahead for the board -- and the corporation.

"Hopefully, we'll get a board that will agree to agree, you might say," Hermon said.

Board president Larry DeVilbiss accepted Hermon's resignation with words of regret. Although Hermon never mentioned it at an MEA meeting, board members knew he was battling cancer and was working to stay healthy.

"… with a lot of regret, I accept your resignation," DeVilbiss said. "I'm sorry it has to happen that way."

Folsom made a motion to put Jordan on the board, a motion Lester had questions about.

"Mr. Hermon occupied the seat for the Palmer section," Lester said. "Mr. Jordan lives in Peters Creek, which is totally out of the section. If Mr. Jordan was appointed, we'd really be breaking the bylaws."

DeVilbiss pointed out that Hermon had actually been elected to an at-large seat, so the replacement could come from anywhere in MEA's service area.

Board member Scott Daugharty said he couldn't support the motion, as it differed from the previously set precedent of advertising for the seat, interviewing applicants and selecting a board member.

"We don't put somebody in the seat who gets third in the election," Daugharty said.

Folsom held to his motion and said he believed it was fitting to honor Hermon's request. Board member Linda Shattuck, who seconded the motion, agreed.

"I would like to honor Mr. Hermon's request," Shattuck said. "Lee is very well-qualified to fill this position."

When the motion came to a vote, Jordan was approved by a 3-2 vote, with Lester and Daugharty dissenting. Lester asked what would happen if Jordan didn't want the seat.

"If Mr. Jordan doesn't want the seat, he'll let us know," DeVilbiss said.

Jordan didn't decline the seat, but said he was surprised when he got word that he was to replace Hermon on the board.

"I knew that Jim was in poor health, but I was not expecting to be appointed," Jordan said. "I had run for the board, I saw that there was a job to be done, and I'm glad to have a chance to do it."

When asked where he fits in the board's current make-up, which is often split between those who strongly support MEA management's suggestions and those who question those suggestions, Jordan said he believes he falls in the middle.

"I had a call of congratulations from one of the people who has been very much on the pro-management side in the past," Jordan said. "He expected to see me become polarized … but I see both sides. I see the value in questioning what management proposes, but I also know the value of doing research …"

Jordan said he brings a business background to the table, which he believes will be helpful in considering the various items that come before the board. He said he hopes to be a bridge-builder on the board.

"I have always been considered a consensus builder, and I hope to be able to play that role with MEA," Jordan said. He said his recent service on the Bylaws Committee helped hone that skill. Bylaw committee members, he said, brought various opinions to the table but, through hours of working together, put together a fairly complex document.

"In the end, we reached unanimous consensus," Jordan said.