At Orcas Power and Light Cooperative’s 75th Anniversary Open House at the Lopez OPALCO Crew Station, Wednesday, July 18, members will be presented with gifts, treated to refreshments, enjoy live music by Hawk Arps and be entertained with stories told by some of the co-op’s longest-standing members. This historic event begins at 1 p.m., with tours of the OPALCO headquarters and a display of Steve Horn’s photos of OPALCO submarine cable lay projects. The story-telling begins at 2 p.m. from OPALCO’s mobile 1937 living room set.

The year-long 75th anniversary celebration honors the co-op family members (longest- standing members, past and present staff and board members) who have helped build the strong, reliable electric co-op that we all enjoy today, said OPALCO staff. Limited edition gifts such as canvas tote bags and wall thermometers featuring the work of Orcas artist Frank Loudin, lapel pins, mugs and copies of the 75th Anniversary Historical Publication will be distributed to all members, while supplies last.

For the full 75th anniversary experience, visit OPALCO’s historical website at www.opalco.com/history to explore a historical timeline, galleries of stories, photos and videos. Visit and “like” OPALCO’s new Facebook page, where you can share your own OPALCO story, photos or memorabilia. The next stop for the 75th Anniversary celebration and story-telling booth will be the county fair in August. Let us know if you have a story to tell. OPALCO will continue to collect member stories and publish them on the historical website to become part of OPALCO’s living legacy.

OPALCO is the cooperative electrical utility serving more than 11,000 co-op member-owners on 20 islands in San Juan County. It provides electricity that is 95 percent greenhouse-gas free and is predominately generated by hydro-electric plants. OPALCO was founded in 1937 to bring electricity to our rural islands.