CEO’s Message – May 2024

Lessons From Geronimo

Some colleagues and I recently discussed great leaders and the conversation turned to a local one—Geronimo.

The famous—or infamous, depending on one’s perspective—Apache leader lived most of his life as one of the most revered, or feared warriors of his time. He led numerous raids and military campaigns in what were then the Arizona and New Mexico territories and in northern Mexico. He was a leader in the Chiricahua band, often commanding between 30 and 50 warriors in various actions, but he was never a chief. He surrendered to the U.S. Calvary three times and escaped twice. After his final surrender in 1885 in Arizona, Geronimo lived the rest of his life as a prisoner of war. He died in Oklahoma in 1909 at the age of 79.

Geronimo’s activities took place in a lot of co-op service territories in Arizona and New Mexico, namely Graham County at Fort Thomas and the San Carlos Reservation; Sulphur Springs, which serves in and around the Chiricahua Mountains; Duncan Valley, in areas of Arizona and New Mexico; and Columbus Electric Co-op, based in southwestern New Mexico.

Another innovative, outside-of-the-box leader, Mike Leach, authored a book about Geronimo titled, “Geronimo: Leadership Strategies of an American Warrior.” Mike earned a law degree from Pepperdine and was a famous—or infamous—college football coach at several major universities. He attained great success by studying pirates and people like Geronimo and applying their lessons to the gridiron. In 21 years of coaching, Mike amassed a 158-107 record. His life ended in 2022 at the age of 61 after suffering from heart ailments.

Mike admired many of the attributes of Geronimo. Interestingly, they can be applied broadly to co-op members and leaders. They include discipline, fortitude, lore, independence, isolation, audacity, passion, fallibility, perseverance, rivalry, honor, resolve, fluidity, resistance and patriotism. In the epilogue to his book, Mike offers four key takeaways he learned from the famous warrior:

• Become a legend.
• Acquire battle scars.
• Live your dreams, or try to.
• Never give up.

Unfortunately for Geronimo, some lessons learned are the most bitter. His last words reportedly were, “I should have never surrendered. I should have fought until I was the last man alive.”

It strikes me there could be a master’s thesis or possibly a book looking at these traits and lessons and applying them comparatively to Geronimo’s actions and the way Arizona and New Mexico co-ops work tirelessly to serve rural communities. Many certainly hit home.

Dave Lock
CEO