Your Board of Directors

Terry Nelson - District 1

Can generally be described as Camas Valley, Tenmile, Olalla, Porter Creek and Reston. 

Terry Nelson, 64, has been a member of the board since 1995 and was the board president for 15 years before leaving that position in 2016. Terry is an electrical engineer and a longtime resident of Camas Valley, graduating from Camas High School in 1974. He later earned a degree in engineering physics at Oregon State University. He and his wife, Monika, have been married 34 years and have four grown children; Joshua, Kayla, Ryan and Matthew.

Evan Barnes - District 2 - President 

Can generally be described as Happy Valley, Lookingglass, San Souci, Flournoy Valley, and the part of Melrose south of Doerner Road.

Evan Barnes, the current board president, has lived in Douglas County since 2006 and been a member of the board since 2013. He had a long career in construction contracting and a strong interest in the utility industry with nine years of experience as a state university project manager/inspector, working on several major capital projects. Evan was hired by the Lookingglass Olalla Water Control District as its district manager in 2011. His experience also includes being a volunteer fireman/EMT and department treasurer, 4-H woodworking instructor and a member of the Grange. Evan is a board member for the Douglas County chapter of the Oregon Small Woodlands Association. In 2015, he was appointed to the Committee for Family Forestlands by the Oregon Board of Forestry.

Suzi Armstrong - District 3 

Can generally be described as the part of Melrose north of Doerner Road, Elgarose, Melqua, Cleveland Rapids, Lower Garden Valley, Umqua, Hubbard Creek, Kellog and Tyee. 

Suzi Armstrong is new (2020) to the Douglas Electric board. After graduating from Chula Vista High School in California and attending San Diego State University for two years, Suzi spent 20 years in the banking industry. She earned vice president and district manager positions with a state bank in California. In 1992, Suzi was president of a Chamber of Commerce for a community of 80,000 residents. Her community service includes being the head volunteer for a middle school free-enterprise system that allows students to study large and small business issues and to tour businesses.

Since moving to Oregon, Suzi has been a mortgage broker at American Pacific Mortgage in Sutherlin. Suzi’s community service in Oregon includes being a former board member for the Kellogg Rural Fire District. She continues to be the administrative assistant there. She is treasurer of the Douglas County Small Woodlands Association, a member of the Kellogg Grange, has done grant writing for the Umpqua Community Center, and is a supporter of FFA programs in Elkton and Oakland. She is a 35-year member of the Ladies Auxiliary of the Fleet Reserve Association, providing support for those in the Navy, Marines and Coast Guard. Suzi owns and co-manages 200 acres of small woodlands with grandson Trevor Armstrong.

Robert Poage - District 4 - Vice President 

Can generally be described as Lower and Upper Smith River, west of Drain to the tunnel on Highway 38 (Drain not included), Anlauf, and Curtin.

Bob Poage, 69, has been a member of the board since 1994. He has lived in rural Oregon for 29 years, since moving from Bakersfield, California, where he was an engineer manager for a division of a large farming company. While there, he worked with a number of water boards, facing problems similar to those the Douglas Electric board encounters. In the past, Robert and his wife, Tammie, owned and operated the Cold Springs Store near Drain. They have retired from that business and now own and manage a few Douglas County properties.

Bill Jackson - District 5

Can generally be described as Yoncalla, Hayhurst, Rice Hill, Scotts Valley, and Elkhead.

Bill Jackson is new (2020) to the Douglas Electric board. He was raised in the Yoncalla area and worked most of his life there. His past experience includes having been a member of the Yoncalla School Board and the board’s budget committee. He’s presently vice president and a board member of the Umpqua chapter of the Oregon Hunter’s Association. Bill has also helped in the past as a club leader in 4-H and FFA programs. Since graduating from Yoncalla High School in 1971, Bill has worked for Douglas Forest Protective Association, for a lumber mill, and as a heavy equipment operator in logging and construction. He and his wife, Ardith, who died of cancer in 2006, have three grown sons.

Carey Weatherly - District 6 

Can generally be described with its eastern edge at the tunnel on Highway 38 extending due west to Elkton, Wells Creek, Scottsburg, Loon Lake, and Deans Creek.

Carey, 72, has served on the board, for 29 years. Carey and his wife, Candace, live on and operate their family ranch. They have two grown children and three grandchildren. Carey is a 1965 Elkton High School graduate and a 1969 Oregon State University graduate in forest engineering. He retired from Roseburg Forests Products in June 2008 after 35 years in the timber business. In reality, he is only semi-retired on a ranch where he cares for 35 mother cows, raises hay and tends to timber.

Shirley Cairns - District 7 - Secretary 

Can generally be described with its western edge at Marvin Hill on Highway 138, its northern edge at Rice Hill on I-5, its southern edge at Sutherlin and Cooper Creek, and its eastern edge at Mt. Scott.

Shirley Cairns, 82, is a 26-year veteran of the Douglas Electric Cooperative board. She has served on the Oregon Rural Electric Cooperative Association board for 18 years. Shirley has also served on United Community Action Network, Umpqua Community College, Bureau of Land Management Resource Advisory Committee and National Information Solutions Cooperative boards. She serves on Cascade Community Federal Credit Union’s finance committee and is an active charter member of Sutherlin Rotary. Shirley, a graduate of West Virginia University and Harvard University, is the mother of three children and has six grandchildren.