Notice of Annual Meeting
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DATES TO REMEMBER BEK BILL PAYMENTS ARE DUE ON THE 20TH OF EACH MONTH JUNE 5 WORLD ENVIRONMENT DAY JUNE 10 BEK ANNUAL MEETING BEK COMMUNICATIONS COOPERATIVE MAY/JUNE 2021 JUNE 14 FLAG DAY NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING JUNE 18 KIDDER COUNTY SCHOOL | STEELE, ND INTERNATIONAL PICNIC DAY JUNE 20 Thursday, June 10, 2021 SUMMER BEGINS Notice is hereby given that the 69th Annual Meeting of the members of BEK Communications Cooperative will be held on Thursday, June 10 JUNE 20 FATHER’S DAY 2021. JUNE 30 As a cooperative member, you are encouraged to come and share WORLD SOCIAL MEDIA DAY our year in review. Your participation in the business meeting of your JULY 1 cooperative is greatly appreciated. For your convenience, free child INTERNATIONAL JOKE DAY care will be available during the meeting. JULY 4 Registration & Beef Supper | 5:30 – 7:00 p.m. INDEPENDENCE DAY Enter at the High School entrance door of the school JULY 5 BEK OFFICES CLOSED IN BEK Communications Cooperative Annual Meeting begins at 7:00 p.m. OBSERVANCE OF INDEPENDENCE Meeting is conducted in the school gymnasium DAY JULY 8 NATIONAL VIDEO GAME DAY LIVE STREAM JULY 13 BEK Digital Television Channels: BEK TV Over the Air: COW APPRECIATION DAY • 25, 26 and 2/1002 in the West • Bismarck/Mandan: KNDB 26.1 • 25, 26 and 4/1004 in the East • Minot: KNDM 24.1 JULY 17 • Fargo: KRDK 4.1 WORLD EMOJI DAY EPIC IPTV: JULY 25 • 65 BEK TV Online: NATIONAL PARENT’S DAY • Facebook • YouTube JULY 30 INTERNATIONAL DAY OF • BEK.tv FRIENDSHIP AUGUST 9 2021 ANNUAL MEETING VOTING NATIONAL WOMEN’S DAY As a reminder, the official voting forms must be signed and AUGUST 12 INTERNATIONAL YOUTH DAY postmarked no later than June 4, 2021. AUGUST 15 If you did not mail in your voting form, we encourage you to vote in NATIONAL RELAXATION DAY person at the 2021 Annual Meeting on June 10. There is no need to AUGUST 19 bring your voting form; we will provide you with a ballot when you BEK COMMUNICATIONSWORLD HUMANITARIAN | BEK.COOP DAY 1 arrive. FROM THE CEO Upcoming Bylaws Changes Please Vote! MAY/JUNE 2021 The BEK Beacon is a bimonthly newsletter DERRICK BULAWA published by BEK Communications, Chief Executive Officer © 2021. It is distributed without charge to all customers. The communications landscape is quite different from 60 years ago. One of the more BEK COMMUNICATIONS COOPERATIVE significant changes for BEK is that our Cooperative service area population is less was founded in 1952 as a local than half of what it was back then. Additionally, we are no longer a sole provider. Every telecommunications cooperative serving Burleigh, Emmons and Kidder Counties. product BEK sells has at least five local and national competitors. Since then, we’ve invested in state-of-the-art infrastructure, developed new products and These changes require your Board of Directors to continually look for new products services, and expanded to also serve Morton, and growth opportunities that you, our members and owners, ask for and use. And, Oliver, McLean, Logan, McIntosh, Barnes, Griggs, Cass, and Steele counties. BEK has as BEK grows its offerings further outside our traditional service area, we evolve our changed quite a bit in 68 years, but we’re still governing documents to help drive the Cooperative forward. a small-town cooperative at heart. This year, we are again looking to update our bylaws to keep up with new products and competitors, and to ensure the Cooperative serves you for many more decades. BEK COMMUNICATIONS COOPERATIVE Below are the suggested changes and a brief description of their importance. 888-475-2361 P.O. Box 230 Proposed Amendment #1 200 East Broadway Steele, ND 58482 Article I, Sections 1, 6, and 7. 220 4th St NE Valley City, ND 58072 Board authority concerning membership requirements and service scope. 923 East Interstate Avenue Shall this section be amended to clarify the Board of Directors’ authority to define Bismarck, ND 58501 the geographic area, the communications services and/or other requirements for membership in the Cooperative. BOARD OF DIRECTORS “The Cooperative was founded on phone service which is being phased DISTRICT I out by cell phones and internet-based communications services. The Board Secretary/Treasurer Shane Morris needs the ongoing ability to continue to grow the Cooperative in a competitive Regan landscape that will no longer have traditional telephone services and grow Sanford Williams the geographical service area as the population in the Cooperative area has Wing decreased. As mentioned above, it is now less than half of what it was in 1960. The Board needs the ability to navigate the competitive landscape by DISTRICT II continuing to diversify products and operational territory.” Bob Subart continued on page 3 Robinson President Brett Stroh Tappen DISTRICT III 2021 Annual Meeting Informational Video Vice President Kevin Bernhardt Linton Watch our video on BEK TV, EPIC IPTV, bek.coop, or YouTube Vickie Martin to learn more about BEK’s 2021 Annual Meeting. This video Linton Leo Meier covers voting instructions, director elections, and proposed Hague bylaw amendments. DISTRICT IV TO WATCH: William (Bill) Becker Wishek EPIC IPTV Ch 72 Gerald Burlack BEK TV Ch 25 Wishek bek.coop/coop/annualmeeting 2 BEK COMMUNICATIONS | BEK.COOP Proposed Amendment # 2. Article II, Section 1. Article VII, Section 2. Establishing existing member priority for distribution of capital credits upon dissolution of the Cooperative and clarification of the Board’s authority to allow retirement of capital credits after the age of 70. If the Cooperative dissolves, shall the capital credits of all current and former members within the Cooperative’s current geographic territory be paid in full before credits are paid to any future members outside of the current geographic territory. Shall the Board have additional authority concerning aged-based capital credit retirement. “As the Cooperative will need to continue to grow its membership outside of its traditional service area, the Board believes it is important to protect the value for the current members as a priority over any new members. Also, the bylaws allow for a one-time age 70 retirement of capital credits. The Board requests the Members further authorize the Board to implement age-based retirements at such ages and on such other terms as the Board deems best for the members.” Proposed Amendment #3 Article XII. Articles of Incorporation, Paragraph 9. Change to bylaw amendment procedures. Shall the process for amending the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws be changed. “As the membership of the Cooperative will likely grow and change in the future, the Board wants to preserve the Cooperative’s traditional governance by adopting a tiered process for future bylaw changes. The first tier allows amendments by a simple majority of members present, when there is a Board recommended bylaw change. The second tier allows amendments by a two-thirds affirmative vote if the Board does not recommend the change. The final tier requires a two-thirds affirmative vote of all members for disposition of property.” Proposed Amendment #4 Article IV, Sections 2, 3, and 4. Article XI, Section 5. Articles of Incorporation, Paragraph 4. Changes to formatting and clean-up of bylaws and articles. Shall the Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws be changed to add formatting changes and remove provisons which are no longer relevant. “As part of its review of the bylaws, the Board has requested the Cooperative’s attorney recommend updates to the formatting of the bylaws and recommend non-substantive changes, like removing provisions which are no longer in force. The Board has reviewed the recommended changes and asks the Members to adopt them.” Soon, you will receive an Annual Report and a Voting Form for your district. The Annual Report contains the full text of the proposed bylaw changes. The Voting Form will come with instructions for voting and mailing. You may also choose to wait and vote at the Annual Meeting, which will be held at 7:00pm on June 10, 2021, at the Kidder County School, in Steele. I encourage your vote in favor of these proposed bylaw changes. They are vital to the continued health and successful future of your cooperative. Thank you for your support. BEK COMMUNICATIONS | BEK.COOP 3 BEK ACQUIRES CYBERNET SECURITY NORTH DAKOTA’S ONLY PURE-PLAY CYBER SECURITY COMPANY BEK Communications announces the acquisition of CyberNet Security, further strengthening the portfolio of quality services offered to our customers. CyberNet Security provides full spectrum solutions to protect the digital information and brand of your business. They offer sophisticated system assessments to determine potential weaknesses, and their industry-certified thought leaders provide strategy, consultation, and support to mitigate identified gaps in protection. John Nagel, CyberNet Security Founder and CEO, is an entrepreneur and native North Dakotan who formed the company in 2017. His global technology experience and innovative approach created the only pure-play cybersecurity company in the state, focusing on protecting critical infrastructure from the inside out. In addition to becoming BEK’s Chief Security Officer, Nagel will continue to lead the cyber security business. JOHN NAGEL CHIEF SECURITY OFFICER Derrick Bulawa, CEO of BEK: “CyberNet Security is the ideal partner to expand our quality communications services commitment to our customers. John and his team are one of the foremost authorities when it comes to cyber protection and we are pleased to welcome them to the BEK family.” Nagel: “We are thrilled to join forces with BEK in bringing cyber security services to their customers and expanding cyber security offerings to North Dakota businesses and the nine other states BEK serves today.” The emphasis on high-speed connectivity in today’s work environment makes cyber security a crucial component that companies and individuals can no longer ignore.