James E. Davis retired from the Excelsior Electric Membership Corporation Board of Directors last year after 50 years of dedicated service to the Cooperative. And Excelsior EMC will recognize Davis at its upcoming annual meeting set for Friday, May 12 at the Nessmith-Lane Conference Center on the Georgia Southern University campus.
        Davis began his service to Excelsior EMC in 1966, and served as vice chairman of the Board for the past 25 years. During his time of service, Davis provided leadership that helped the cooperative grow from 5,895 consumers to more than 22,600 today.
        Also, he provided guidance that saw the Excelsior's total assets increase from $3.5 million in 1966 to more than $87.2 million today, all the while providing quality service and maintaining rates that are among the lowest in the state.
        Davis is a lifelong member of the Hubert United Methodist Church and a former member of the Board of Directors of Farmers and Merchants Bank where he served as chairman. He is respected as a progressive and innovative farmer, and is known for his participation in numerous organizations, including Georgia Farm Bureau. Davis and his family's farm was recognized as a recipient of the Georgia Centennial Farm Award in 1993. Davis is a former member of the Bulloch County Board of Education, too.
        When reflecting on his years of service to Excelsior, Davis said that he took his service to the EMC personally and noted that he felt responsible for not only representing Excelsior EMC's best interests, but also the interests of each and every member.
        "Years ago, before technology became what is today, outages were more difficult to report to our main office," Davis said. "Citizens in the community would alert me when their power went out, and I would alert the main office."
        David T. Cromley was selected to fill Davis' unexpired term on the board. Cromley is a graduate of Southeast Bulloch High School and obtained a Bachelor of Science in Agriculture majoring in Animal Science from the University of Georgia. He is a sixth generation farmer, working alongside his father and uncle on their family farm in Brooklet. David and his wife Jamie are the proud parents of a newborn daughter and attend Connection Church in Statesboro.
        Excelsior EMC is a member-owned cooperative providing electricity to approximately 22,600 homes and businesses. The cooperative serves members in Bryan, Bulloch, Candler, Effingham, Emanuel, Evans, Jenkins and Tattnall counties.