In Iowa, rural homes didn’t see the glow of electric Christmas lights until the 1930s and 1940s, when rural electric cooperatives began bringing power to farms and small towns. Before then, kerosene lamps and candles offered only a modest holiday shimmer.

Now is the time to lead through change, and we will have ample opportunities to do so in the electric utility industry. It all points back to our electric cooperative purpose and our collective mission: to power lives and empower communities.

Even if you’ve already put the many advantages of smart electronics to work for your home and family, you might be surprised by some of the newer devices with the potential to change your daily life.

After a brief stay at the University of Iowa Health Care Stead Family Children’s Hospital in Iowa City, 5-year-old Nolan Toomsen organized a successful farm toy drive for the hospital.