Janet Kass for KIUC Board of Directors

03/14/2025

Endorsement by JoAnn Yukimura

03/09/2025

Endorsement from Mel Ventura:

As a member of KIUC, I am supporting Janet Kass, who is running for the KIUC Board of Directors. I have been fortunate to work closely with Janet on the St. Catherine’s Parish Finance Committee, which she has chaired for the past few years. She has demonstrated a vast knowledge of Accounting and Finance and knows how to run meetings. She gets necessary work done through strong leadership and achieving a consensus.

Janet previously served on the KIUC Board of Directors for two terms and was an executive of another electric cooperative before moving to Kauai, giving her substantial experience and knowledge of the electric utility world.

Janet has the experience, knowledge and leadership qualities to be a major asset for the KIUC Board.

Mel Ventura, President of Ventura Development Corp. (which developed the Grand Hyatt, Kauai and the KIUC main offices in Lihue)

03/07/2025

Janet Kass will be an excellent Director for KIUC and I am using one of my three votes for her. Janet has a deep love for service and for our community. She will help insure KIUC moves forward with our community needs in mind. Janet has the experience necessary to be a good director. She understands the role of the Board of Directors, and she understands the electric utility business. We need Janet’s point of view on the KIUC board.

Walt Barnes
Founding (and Former) Director of KIUC
Former Director, KIUC Foundation
Former Director, Kauai Island Land Trust
Former Director and Past President, Garden Isle Racing Association
Director, Hawaii Health Systems Corporation - Kauai Region
Lead Scientist for Cyber Security, AT&T, retired

03/06/2025

Now is the time to vote for the KIUC board of directors. I received my own ballot on Monday, March 3. Please open your ballot and vote, preferably for me. On my campaign page you can see several endorsements for me and several short posts I've written about KIUC.

03/03/2025

Endorsement from Bronwyn Farias:

Here is my letter of endorsement for a person whom I believe truly deserves my vote.

I am a friend of Janet Kass who is running for election to the KIUC Board of Directors.

I met Janet through our Church where she is our Choir Director. Her talents are far reaching and well rounded, as I have met her in Committee and Board Meetings. I have seen first hand how dedicated and passionate she is in all her dealings and her responsibilities. We have not always been on similar sides of issues and challenges, but I can say that she is thorough, fair, and consistent with her leadership.

She is highly qualified to have a seat on the KIUC Board due to her past experience in the Industry. She worked with a similar electric cooperative, which gives Janet experience of the trends and demands the Industry must keep up with in order to remain sustainable. The constant challenges for growth and progress in the future of an electric cooperative is a vital requirement for a person running for a seat on our KIUC Board.

Bronwyn Farias
KIUC Member

03/02/2025

Endorsement from Masala:

Janet is pawsitively the purrfect candidate for the KIUC Board of Directors. While most humans are busy clawing their way to the top, Janet is busy purrtecting our electric cooperative’s future, ensuring that it resiliently bounces back from catastrophes. She’s the kind of person who thinks ahead—not just for herself, but for all of us furtunate beings.

Her broad business hisstory makes her very purrsuasive on every board she serves on. She’s truly the cat’s whiskers when it comes to leadership!

But wait, there’s more! Janet’s a pawsome listener. Whether I’m howling for extra treats or begging for more playtime, she’s there for me—no kitten around. And when it comes to cuddles? Let’s just say, she’s the real MVP in the cattitude department. Cuddles are the ultimate test of character, and Janet passes with flying colors (or fur, rather).

Janet is a furrocious advocate for the common cat—no cat left behind! Her commitment to us is furmidable. She pounces on every opportunity to serve me (and perhaps humanity, too).

Janet is my furever friend. I implore you: don’t furget to vote for her! Janet’s the catalyst we need. In fact, pawlease plunk for her (that’s “vote only for her,” for the uninitiated). I wish I could vote for her too, but as a DEI purrson, my paws are tied — thanks, federal government. 🙀

03/01/2025

Endorsement from Mel Ventura:

"As a member of KIUC, I am supporting Janet Kass, who is running for the KIUC Board of Directors. I have been fortunate to work closely with Janet on the St. Catherine’s Parish Finance Committee, which she has chaired for the past few years. She has demonstrated a vast knowledge of Accounting and Finance and knows how to run meetings. She gets necessary work done through strong leadership and achieving a consensus.

Janet previously served on the KIUC Board of Directors for two terms and was an executive of another electric cooperative before moving to Kauai, giving her substantial experience
and knowledge of the electric utility world.

Janet has the experience, knowledge and leadership qualities to be a major asset for the KIUC Board."

Mel Ventura, President of Ventura Developent Corp. (which developed the Grand Hyatt, Kauai and the KIUC main office in Lihue)

02/26/2025

Broad Experience from 62 Electric Co-ops: I am running for election to the board of KIUC. You will receive your ballot during the first week of March. I was the CFO of an electric co-op in Michigan for 10 years and I was on the KIUC board for 6 years. On top of that, I have a fairly extension knowledge of how 60 other electric coops have solved their business problems because I served for 9 years on a trade association of electric coops, sharing detailed strategies and war stories with those 60 other coops. Hence, I offer a broad perspective at the KIUC board table.

02/24/2025

02/18/2025

What does the KIUC board actually do (answer #2)?

The routine duty of a board member is to listen to staff and ask questions. It isn't a glamorous role.

I used to be the CFO of an electric cooperative. I felt obliged to keep the board very well informed of all important financial matters. Because the board met once a month, I gave them a report every month -- both on regular topics and on big projects we were working on. By listening and asking questions, the board members held me and the CEO accountable for how the company was running.

So that is the unglamourous role that directors perform: listening and asking questions. The making of big decisions is perhaps glamorous, but less frequent.

02/17/2025

What does the KIUC board (or any corporate board) actually do? I was on the KIUC board for 6 years, so I have been there and done that. Below I provide the type of answer that you expect. I'll have a later post that gives you an answer that you might not expect.

The board:
1. Establishes the strategic goals that all KIUC employees work to accomplish
2. Makes big decisions (like building a new power plant or changing electric rates)
3. Approves large expenditures
4. Hires the CEO, gives him annual goals, and evaluates his performance each year

02/12/2025

How should KIUC become more resilient? One of its strategic goals is to "become more resilient, improve reliability, and be better able to handle operational challenges and threats from cybersecurity, local climate change impacts and natural disasters, such as hurricanes and floods." What suggestions do you have?