WALLA WALLA-Incumbents Patrick Dennis, Jay DeWitt and Dennis Munden were all re-elected to the Columbia REA Board of Directors in the 2019 board elections.

Jay DeWitt lives in rural Walla Walla county. He is co-founder of Dumas Station Wines and makes his living growing grapes and making wine. He graduated from WSU in 1980 with a Bachelor of Science degree in agronomy and has had a varied career which includes crop protectant sales, crop consulting and farming.

Dennis Munden (District 2) lives in Burbank Heights and is a retired Agriculture Science and Natural Resources instructor in Burbank and several Tri-Cities area schools. He is a graduate of WSU. He is a long-time member of Columbia REA and has served his community as a firefighter/EMT with Fire District No. 5 for 27 years.

Patrick Dennis (District 1) has been a Columbia REA member since 2007. He was a profession in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia and a federal government program director at the National Science Foundation. He has extensive training and experience in project and risk management.

The Columbia REA 2019 Boar of Directors includes: Greg Knowles (president), Neil Carpenter (vice president), Doug Logan (secretary/treasurer), Patrick Dennis, Jay DeWitt, Dennis Munden, Vic Parks, Glen Shipley, Katie Woolridge.

"We have a terrific mix of expertise and experience all coming together from diverse backgrounds and careers. Each of these board members is a long-time resident of the area who brings a deep understanding of the important issues that will impact the Co-op's membership as well as the region as a whole going forward," said Columbia REA CEO Scott Peters in a press release.

Columbia REA was formed in 1939 by rural residents and farmers in Columbia County who did not have access to electricity. Columbia REA is a member-owned and locally-managed nonprofit cooperative. The co-op has grown from its original 72 members to over 5,500 accounts and covers more than 5,500 miles in Columbia and Walla Walla counties in Washington and a portion of Umatilla County in Oregon.

Columbia REA contributes to more than 100 different organizations each year, with a focus on education and youth programs such as Junior Achievement, FFA, 4-H, Little League and others. Learn more at http://www.columbiarea.coop.