April / 2001
Commonwealths

Co-op Cast Away connection

If you are one of the millions who have seen Cast Away, the movie starring Tom Hanks, you may not have known that a Kentucky electric cooperative played a role in the film.
In an opening scene, posters of frogs and flowers adorn an office wall.
Those posters might be familiar to thousands of elementary school children in Kentucky, because they were produced by East Kentucky Power Co-op in Winchester, specifically by Jeff Hohman, the generation and transmission co-op's natural resources and environmental communications manager.
The flora and fauna are indigenous to East Kentucky's service area, similar to ones he takes to thousands of presentations each year for elementary and junior high school children, where he discusses Kentucky wildlife and East Kentucky's role in preserving and protecting these species.
Word of the posters reached the producers of the movie, whose set designer called the co-op to request permission to use them in the filming.
East Kentucky generates and transmits electricity to 17 local electric cooperatives in the eastern part of the state.

Teacher education aid
Students interested in becoming teachers can get financial aid for higher education through the Kentucky Higher Education Assistance Authority Teacher Scholarship Program. Freshmen and sophomores can receive up to $625 for each semester. Students above the sophomore level can receive up to $2,500 for each semester. The aid can be used at any college or university in Kentucky.
Students must file by May 1 to apply for a scholarship for the 2001-2002 academic year. For more information, visit www.kheaa.com; write to KHEAA, 1050 US Highway 127 S, Frankfort, KY 40601-4323; call (800) 928-8926 extension 7392, or e-mail ppolly@kheaa.com.