
CO-OPS CONNECT
Co-ops Connect is Conexon's podcast hosted by SVP of Marketing, Sales and Account Management, Abby Carere, bringing you heartfelt stories from Rural Electric Cooperatives deploying high-speed fiber internet networks to their service territories. We sit down with co-op leaders who are tackling head-on the rewards and challenges of bridging the Digital Divide in rural America, one mile of fiber at a time.Conexon is proud to be at the forefront of the electric cooperative fiber broadband movement, partnering with co-ops across the country to transform communities with world-class fiber internet. Our values align with the cooperative principles of sharing resources and working together to improve services and lives of the members served by our co-ops.No matter where your cooperative is in its fiber broadband journey, there are valuable lessons to learn from the co-ops who have blazed the trail before you. Listen and learn more about how your electric co-op can build a brighter, more connected future for your community with fiber to the home.
Episodes
23 episodes
Dedication to Delivery
Prompted by the need to update the cooperative's electric grid and enhance smart grid capabilities, Oklahoma's Canadian Valley Electric Cooperative realized high-speed communications was the way to go. Fortunately, Oklahoma is home to many othe...
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Episode 24
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41:31

Navigating the Path to Broadband Success
Kosciusko Connect and its fiber subsidiary Kosciusko Rural Electric Membership Corporation (Kosciusko REMC), embark on its remarkable growth story since the co-op’s FTTH project conception in 2022. Tune in this week as Conexon's SVP of Sales, M...
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Episode 23
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32:14

Empowering the Community With Connectivity
Oklahoma Electric Cooperative and its fiber subsidiary, OEC Fiber, have kept community at the forefront since the co-op’s FTTH project conception in 2017– and the results are paying off. OEC Fiber was recently recognized as the Best Fiber Inter...
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Episode 22
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47:35

Trailblazing Florida’s Big Bend with Broadband
As the first electric cooperative in the state of Florida to deliver and deploy a FTTH network, rural north Florida’s Tri-County Electric Cooperative has overcome the learning curve and taken away some key lessons along the way. Listen in as Co...
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Episode 21
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32:04

From Passion to Progress
Since 2020, Central Rural Electric Cooperative has been keeping both its members and employees at the forefront of its fiber-to-the-home project. Listen in as Conexon's SVP of Sales, Marketing, and Account Management, Abby Carere, speaks with C...
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Episode 19
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15:49

Building a FTTH Network from the Ground up
One of the first electric cooperatives to partner with Conexon Connect in building a 100% fiber-to-the-home network, Central Georgia EMC was a trailblazer in connecting members to the future with world-class, high-speed internet. Listen i...
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Episode 18
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24:32

The Ins and Outs of Off-System Builds
For many electric cooperatives, fiber projects often go beyond their own membership to serve surrounding areas with the high-speed internet desperately needed to stay connected in the digital age. This episode, listen in as Co-Mo Connect's CEO,...
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Episode 17
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35:42

Bringing Cooperative Values to Broadband Builds
Electric cooperatives made it their mission in the '30s and '40s to bring electricity to rural America. Today, they are committed to doing the same with fiber broadband projects. Tune in this week as Conexon's SVP of Sales, Marketing, and Accou...
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Episode 16
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35:28

Funding Makes All the Difference
It's no secret that a fiber project is both an intricate construction process and a costly undertaking, but it is a necessary addition to electric cooperatives to close the digital divide with today's levels of connectivity. Listen in as Conexo...
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Episode 15
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23:54

Streamlining Services with Smart Grid Technology
Fiber broadband offers communities so much more than high-speed internet: It also enables Smart Grid capabilities to improve connectivity and communications on the electric system. Tune into the latest episode of Co-ops Connect as Conexon's SVP...
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Episode 14
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37:36

Funding Insights with Special Guest Gary Wood
Funding for broadband networks is a critical component of connecting rural America to high-speed fiber internet. This week, guest host Jonathan Chambers, Conexon Partner, and special guest Gary Wood, President/CEO of Central Virginia Electric C...
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Episode 13
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48:27

Dream to Delivery
The need for fiber broadband services was one that Central Georgia EMC was well aware of for many years. After two years of conversations with eight different broadband entities, Conexon Connect turned Central Georgia's dream of broadband to a ...
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Episode 12
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24:32

Building Friendships Through Fiber
When it comes to building a fiber-to-the-home (FTTH) network, everyone has a story that needs to be heard. GoSEMO Fiber, subsidiary of SEMO Electric Cooperative in Missouri, began its fiber network project in 2017 and has built nearly 2,000 mil...
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Episode 11
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10:25

Riding the Wave to 10,000 Subscribers
After starting its fiber-to-the-home broadband project in 2018, Arkansas Valley Electric Cooperative and its fiber subsidiary, WAVE Rural Connect, dove head-first into the project to start connecting members that next year. Today, Wave has more...
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Episode 10
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7:27

Setting the Pace for Connectivity
In 2017, Oklahoma Electric Cooperative formed OEC Fiber to move full speed ahead with a fiber network build to bring high-speed internet to members. As one of Conexon's earliest clients, the OEC Fiber team has seen the growth of the electric co...
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Episode 9
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20:38

Taking the Leap of Faith to Change Members' Lives
Washington EMC management waited and hoped for a provider to serve its rural Georgia residents with critical high-speed internet, but it became apparent that no one would. The EMC stepped up to deliver this life-changing service. Washington EMC...
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Episode 8
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17:00

The Business of Improving Rural Quality of Life
Broadband connectivity was a longstanding topic of discussion for Coast EPA and its fellow cooperatives in Mississippi. After going back and forth on the idea of bringing fiber internet to its members and conducting three feasibility studies, t...
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Episode 7
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13:47

Alternative Broadband Models Bring New Opportunities
After initially tabling the idea of bringing fiber broadband services to members, Osage Valley Electric Cooperative had a change of heart when leaders heard Conexon Founding Partner Randy Klindt speak about potential RDOF opportunities for the ...
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Season 1
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Episode 6
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30:47

Teamwork Makes the Dream Work
The power of the cooperative spirit has never been more evident than when East Mississippi Electric Power Association staff, members, and partners joined forces to leverage the power of Mississippi CARES Act federal funding to bring broadband t...
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Episode 5
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32:57

Champions of Communication
When it came to launching East Central Oklahoma Electric Cooperative's fiber services, CEO Tim Smith learned early on there's no such thing as overcommunication. His cooperative formed a task force that became fiber subsidiary ecoLINK's biggest...
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35:06

Fiber is the Right Fit
After searching for the right internet solution for co-op members since Hurricane Ike in 2008, Mid-South Electric Co-op in Texas tested fiber internet in 2018 and immediately recognized its potential for the service area. Conexon’s SVP of Sal...
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Season 1
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Episode 3
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27:36

Evolving With Smart Grid Technology
Before smart grid technology, Arkansas' South Central Electric Cooperative staff spent hours every month visiting meters and manually reading data. South Central Connect CEO Colby Wells speaks with Conexon's SVP of Sales, Marketing and Account ...
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Season 1
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Episode 2
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24:36

When Take Rates Take Off
The feasibility challenges identified for Pemiscot-Dunklin Electric Cooperative’s fiber-to-the-home network stacked up: a density of just 5 meters per mile and existing electric infrastructure that is 100% underground meant a build of 5-7 years...
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Season 1
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Episode 1
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29:23
