Beyond the light: Oklahoma co-op volunteers participate in NRECA International’s inaugural community service project

“It Starts with Power.”

Simple words that carry a powerful message: Development begins with electricity.

That belief is at the heart of NRECA International, the philanthropic arm of the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. For nearly 65 years, NRECA International has helped bring electricity to more than 220 million people in 48 countries, opening the door to greater opportunity, economic development and an improved quality of life.

But what happens after the lights come on?

In 2026, NRECA International launched a new pilot initiative designed to answer that question. Its inaugural community service project builds on the organization’s traditional electrification work by focusing on what comes next—helping communities use electricity as a tool for education, empowerment and opportunity.

The first-of-its-kind project brought together 10 electric cooperative volunteers from across the country, including two representatives from Oklahoma’s electric cooperatives.

The volunteers spent a week in Guatemala working with Asociación Juntos Podemos (Together We Can), a nonprofit organization in the village of El Hato near Antigua. The organization operates a literacy center for local children and a community garden that provides opportunities to teach food sovereignty, environmental stewardship and cooking skills to local women.

The volunteers installed five computers at the literacy center and programmed them to default to Spanish. They also donated Spanish-language books for the center’s library, helped prepare areas of the community garden and worked alongside children on crafts and reading exercises.

For the volunteers, the trip was about more than completing a list of projects. It was about building on the impact that electricity can have long after a community is connected to the grid.

Jennifer Meason, CEO of Cotton Electric Cooperative in Walters, Oklahoma, was one of the volunteers. Meason previously participated in a lighting ceremony for an Oklahoma- and Colorado-sponsored electrification project in Guatemala. She said the new initiative provides an opportunity to expand NRECA International’s work by engaging more cooperative volunteers and addressing the critical role education plays once the lights are on.

“This group of people came from across the country with one purpose—to make lives better,” Meason said. “We have been asked before what happens after a community gets electricity. This trip allowed us to spend time to equip them with resources and education, all made possible because of electric power.”

Meason also serves as Oklahoma’s representative on the NRECA Board. In that national role, she was recently appointed chair of NRECA International Board and chair of the NRECA International Committee. After 27 years in the cooperative industry, Meason said participating in international projects continues to give her a new perspective on the cooperative mission.

“It gives you a different perspective as you return. It’s a time to look inward and count your blessings,” Meason said. “There’s great excitement in the opportunity to give back. For so many in rural Guatemala, their lives are harder with fewer resources, but they are happy and don’t complain. It’s a blessing to know we’re doing something to make their lives easier.”

Nikki Bode, multimedia specialist for the Oklahoma Association of Electric Cooperatives, also volunteered for the mission. Bode documented the project through photography and videography and said her first trip to Guatemala was profoundly impactful.

“I’m humbled, grateful and honored to have been given this opportunity to serve alongside our co-ops in this project,” Bode said. “I fell in love with the country and its people. I did not realize the entire impact this trip would have for my life outlook. I was reminded that life is about the genuine people who surround you no matter your situation, no matter where you are.”

The project demonstrated that electrification is only the beginning. When the lights come on, new possibilities can follow—access to education, opportunities to learn, tools to grow and the ability to build a brighter future.

Because it starts with power.

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About NRECA International: Since 1962, NRECA International has empowered more than 220 million people worldwide to improve their quality of life by providing them access to safe, reliable and affordable electricity. NRECA International was established to share lessons learned in the electrification of rural areas of the United States. NRECA International has empowered communities by creating 250 electric cooperatives across the globe that serve more than 220 million people in 48 countries.

Media Contact:

Anna Politano, Director of Public Relations & Communications, Okla. Assn. of Electric Co-ops

Phone: 405-761-0289

E-mail: apolitano@oaec.coop