Northern Neck Educator Receives Co-op Service Award
A retired educator from Westmoreland County is the winner of the 2019 Distinguished Service Award from the Virginia, Maryland & Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives (VMDAEC).
Elnora Tompkins received the award July 29 as part of the VMDAEC 75th Annual Meeting in Williamsburg.
A longtime teacher and guidance counselor at A.T. Johnson School in Montross, Mrs. Tompkins served for 32 years on the board of directors of Northern Neck Electric Cooperative (NNEC) in Warsaw, including 26 years as secretary-treasurer.
In presenting the award, Richard G. Johnstone Jr., president and CEO of the VMD Association, said Mrs. Tompkins “has embodied in her exceptional life and career the very best qualities of a cooperative leader, a public servant, a community pillar, and a Virginia gentlewoman.”
Mrs. Tompkins, who was the first member of her family to complete high school, said she was surprised and grateful to receive the recognition from the cooperative community.
“I’m too excited to say anything,” she laughed. “Even before I came on board, I enjoyed knowing about the electric cooperative. I have enjoyed every moment that I have served with them.”
In addition to her co-op service, Mrs. Tompkins, a graduate of Virginia State University, has chaired the board of directors of Rappahannock Community College and the VMD Association’s Communications and Public Relations Committee. She served on the Westmoreland County School Board and her local American Cancer Society chapter, among other civic contributions.
Several of Mrs. Tompkins’ relatives, colleagues and former students were in attendance as she accepted the award.
“Elnora has so many endearing and outstanding qualities, it is hard to pick just a few to point out,” said Greg White, president and CEO of NNEC, who worked with her at both the co-op and July 29, 2019 the VMD Association. “Her warm and loving personality, her wonderful smile and her perfect enunciation of the English language are ones that I am sure everyone recognizes.”
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Headquartered in Glen Allen, Va., the Virginia, Maryland & Delaware Association of Electric Cooperatives provides safety and training, communications and legislative services to 15 electric cooperatives serving the three-state Mid-Atlantic region. For more information on VMDAEC and the lineman’s rodeo, visit www.vmdaec.com or www.co-opliving.com.
Elnora Tompkins of Westmoreland County accepts the Distinguished Service Award with Greg White, president and CEO of Northern Neck Electric Cooperative.