West Oregon Electric Cooperative (WOEC) > About > Board of Directors

The West Oregon Electric Cooperative Board of Directors meet the 4th Tuesday of each month @ 7 pm in the WOEC boardroom at 652 Rose Ave, Vernonia, OR, 97064.

Public notices:

The December Board meeting has been moved to December 20th, 2022 at 7:00PM.

Patricia Jordan, District 1 – Serving Elsie, Jewell, & Necanicum

Pat Jordan joined her husband, Jerry, in Seaside after she retired from Oklahoma State University in 2015. They have a son, daughter-in-law, and two grandchildren living in Portland.

Living in Oregon has made her realize that she wants to become active in protecting this beautiful country. Pat believes that leaving the smallest carbon footprint we can leave for our children and grandchildren depends on our ability to provide electricity to the community by utilizing wind, water, solar, and other sustainable natural resources while containing costs.

As a member of the Board of Directors, Pat would bring the ability to insightfully weigh pros and cons of the long-term effects of changes in upgrades in our service to address wildfires, storm damage, and the cost of providing electricity throughout the region within a balanced, consumer-supported budget.

Paul Seamons, District 2, Serving Apiary, Mist, & Birkenfeld

Paul is an Officer of Cadenza Corporation which has owned 38 acres in District 2 since 1970 and has been a WOEC member since that time. He is a semi-retired professional engineer and has worked in the pulp and paper and other industrial plants in various operating, maintenance and engineering management positions over the years. For the last 30+ years he has operated an engineering consulting business (Columbia Consulting Team Inc.) providing construction and maintenance services to pulp and paper mills in Oregon, Washington, California, and Arizona.

Clearly maintaining and improving our electrical service network is vital to our community.If I can help support that effort, I am happy to do so.

Jim Buxton, Board Vice President, District 3 – Serving Vernonia & Keasey

Jim Buxton brings a wide variety of experience that benefits the West Oregon Broad of Directors. He is currently the WOEC Board Vice President. Jim served in the Oregon National Guard and worked in electronics at Tektronix, Inc. for 13 years before resigning to own and operate a sawmill. Later, Jim was the Mechanic at Vernonia Auto Parts Saw Shop, wrote software for and operated computer numeric control machines, was a Purchaser and a Bookkeeper for a steel fabrication company and the Upper Nehalem Watershed Council, as well as Computer Technician for the Vernonia School District.

Jim believes in and supports the cooperative enterprise. He wants lower rates in the future in part by retiring debt now. “Rates are only a part of the equation, service is another.” Since moving to the Vernonia area in 1966, Jim has considered himself a WOEC watcher, attending monthly board meetings, discussing issues with managers and board members and keeping co-op members informed by writing letters to the Editor and articles in the local newspapers. Jim was instrumental in opening board meetings to members and adding bylaws requiring WOEC to create a budget and a savings fund for storm damage.

Jim is currently retired and has four children, seven grandchildren and two great-grandchildren. He and his wife Cici live on Keasey Road.

Brett Costley, District 4 – Serving Vernonia

Brett currently serves as the WOEC Board President. Brett was born and raised in Covington, Georgia and graduated with a BBE and MSEE from the Georgia Institute of Technology.  He worked as an engineer for Compaq Computer Corporation in Houston, Texas where he met his wife, Penny.  Brett and Penny moved to Oregon in 1997 where Brett worked for Intel Corporation in Hillsboro, Oregon for fifteen years.  Shortly after moving to Vernonia in 1998, he became involved in community work including serving on the Vernonia City Council for almost ten years and the Vernonia School District board for five.  He is currently a teacher in the Vernonia Middle School and Vernonia High School as well as President of the Vernonia Health Center. Brett and Penny are proud parents of two native Vernonians, Grace and Nicholas.

Ray Taber, District 5 – Serving Buxton & Timber

Ray is a retired carpenter and proud Vernonia resident. He started his 43 year career as an apprentice and moved through the ranks as superintendent, project manager, estimator, and then supervisor. He has experience in contract administration and project design for municipalities.

“Some of my work included traffic signal lighting across southern Colorado, tunnel and freeway lighting in Arizona, major municipal water treatment plants, a dormitory in Death Valley, and health centers. Among my favorite projects were award-winning historical restorations of the Arizona capitol, and of the Grand Canyon National Park lodges”.

“I am interested in improved reliability, greater transparency, and reduced operating costs. This may no all be possible, but I would like to try”!

Certifications earned (now expired in retirement) include:

  • Levels 1 & 2 Traffic Control Supervisor
  • Fire Main UFM4 Contractor
  • Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED AP, BD&C)
  • OSHA 10-hour course
  • CPR: Universal First Aid, Fall Protection, Confined Space, Scaffolding, Excavation, and various “Equipment Specific” certifications.
  • Dust Control Compliance
  • Storm Water Pollution Protection Plan (SWPPP)

 

Jolene Jonas, District 6 – Serving Scappoose & Chapman

Jolene was born and raised in Wisconsin. After graduating from college, she explored many areas of the United States looking for a place to land: Florida, Arizona, Southern California, and Colorado. She began her career as an Enterprise Architect for Wells Fargo while in Denver. After eight years, Wells Fargo transferred her and her family to Portland, Oregon. A few years later, Wells Fargo offered another transfer to Tempe, Arizona, at which point she declined and started working for Intel. According to Jolene, NW Oregon is much like Wisconsin with it’s abundance of trees, beautiful flowers, wildlife, and all four seasons; but an improvement. She has lived in the Chapman area for 32 years and will never leave!

When we first moved to Chapman we had frequent power outages, sometimes weeks at a time.  But over those 32 years WOEC’s service has improved exponentially.  Power outages are rare, and quickly resolved.  As a board member I hope to assist in WOEC’s continual improvement.  Over my 25-year career in Intel’s IT department, I was the architect on many projects focused on delivering efficiency/process improvements while eliminating waste.  I believe those skills will be of value in the WOEC community as well. 

Mark Ludeman, Secretary/Treasurer, District 7 – Serving Manning, Hagg Lake, & Yamhill Co.

Mark brings over 30 years of experience owning and operating his own business. Currently, Mark is the owner of a healing center on 40 acres in Buxton, OR. 

I am the current owner of A Oasis in Nature Retreat and Healing Center” with rooms and campsites on forty acres up above Buxton Oregon. I have live here with my wife for fifteen years, over time I have become familiar with the area and West Oregon Electric Cooperative. I have been married for 47 years and have four grown children and 1 grandchild who live in the Portland Oregon area. I have over 30 years of business experience, I ran Ludeman’s Fireplace and Patio store in Beaverton Oregon, I started it with A Retailer and built it to a four million a year retail business with 25 employees. I now do physical and emotional healing work and farming. In addition to my retreat center and campsites, I am a third-generation Oregonian and have lived in Oregon all my life.