At the 81st annual meeting of the South Dakota Rural ElectricAssociation(SDREA) held in Pierre this past weekend, a local man was recognized for his leadership in the industry. Kermit Pearson of Lake City was presented with SDREA’s 2023 Legacy of Leadership Award. This award highlights outstanding cooperative leaders who lend their talent, time, expertise, and passion toward achieving success for their cooperatives and their service areas.
Pearson serves as board president of Lake Region Electric Association, based in Webster, S.D. He is dedicated to the electric cooperative movement and mission and has held leadership positions on various cooperative boards at the local and regional levels for more than 42 years. In addition to his involvement at Lake Region Electric, Pearson currently holds leadership positions on the SDREA, East River Electric Power Cooperative, and Basin Electric Power Cooperative boards.
At the annual meeting, attendees also heard compelling presentations from industry leaders as well as from Sen. John Thune and Rep. Dusty Johnson. Sen. Mike Rounds also addressed the audience and provided an in-depth update on federal legislative issues he faces in Congress.