Bennetts Appointed to SDCEA Board

Blake Bennetts headshotBuena Vista native Blake Bennetts was appointed to the Sangre de Cristo Electric Association (SDCEA) Board of Directors June 29. Bennetts will represent members in the town of Buena Vista, a seat on the board which was vacated by the resignation of Dave Volpe in April.

After graduating from Buena Vista High School, Bennetts obtained his Bachelor of Science degree in civil engineering, with an emphasis in water resources, from Colorado State University. After college, Bennetts worked for a heavy civil dam construction company for 10 years as a project manager. He currently works for ACA (Asphalt, Concrete, Aggregate) Products in Buena Vista as the sales and development manager.

“I am husband to an amazing wife and father to three very energetic kids. We moved back to Buena Vista in 2019 after living all over the United States, with the hopes of settling down. We love the small town and community feel, and we enjoy being back around our family and friends. When I’m not at work, you can find me outside hiking, fishing, hunting and exploring with my family.

“I hope to bring a long-term, local perspective to the board, along with my project management skills. I am excited to learn from the current directors and to help create more transparency and improve the morale within SDCEA and all co-op members. It is more important than ever to work together as a rural community,” Bennetts said.

“Blake is very familiar with the area and the issues that are important to its residents. He will bring a unique perspective to the board and will be an invaluable asset in shaping the future of the SDCEA. He is committed to representing the best interests of his constituents and ensuring that they have a strong voice in decisions that affect them. We are confident that he will serve Buena Vista and SDCEA with distinction,” SDCEA Board Chair Joe Redetzke said.

Bennetts said he is interested in learning from the current directors about how the cooperative is led and is encouraged by the community to be part of a solution to help bring safe and reliable electricity to the SDCEA cooperative members.

“I am interested in learning all the challenges with rural electricity and hope to offer another perspective to help bring solutions along with the other directors,” Bennetts said.
Bennetts is a member of the town of Buena Vista Planning and Zoning Commission, as well as a youth wrestling head coach.

Per SDCEA policy A-4, if an SDCEA director resigns more than eight months before the end of their term, the selection of a new director shall be carried out within three regular board meetings of the occurrence of said vacancy. At the beginning of June, a director search committee interviewed four candidates who applied for the seat and recommended Bennetts to the full board for approval. Bennetts will take his seat at the board’s July 27 meeting. Recently elected board members Sandra Attebery and Nick Hellbusch were seated at the June 29 meeting.