Thanksgiving is a season for pausing to count what matters. For all of us at EJ Water Cooperative, that list starts with you.
It’s easy to think of a water utility as just a service — something that shows up when you turn the tap and disappears the rest of the time. But EJ Water isn’t a company serving customers. It’s a cooperative owned by the very people it serves. That’s not a technicality. It’s the whole reason we exist, and it’s the reason we’ve been able to grow the way we have.
From two counties to nearly 100,000 people
When this cooperative was formed nearly four decades ago, the mission was simple: bring safe, reliable water to rural areas that otherwise wouldn’t have had access to it. In fact, the “EJ” in our name stands for Effingham and Jasper — the two counties where it all began.
Today, EJ Water provides healthy drinking water to nearly 100,000 people across 19 Illinois counties, with more than 14,000 members and thousands of miles of waterline reaching places that big utilities passed by.
We didn’t grow because of a marketing budget or a corporate headquarters somewhere far away. We grew because rural communities chose us — neighbor telling neighbor, member after member deciding that a locally rooted, member-owned cooperative was worth joining. Every mile of that growth traces back to people like you.
What “member-owned” really means
Being a cooperative means the people we serve have a real stake in how we operate. You’re not a customer whose account is a line item. You’re an owner.
That ownership shapes everything. It’s why decisions get made with the long term in mind — because we’re accountable to our members, not to outside shareholders looking for a quick return. It’s why we work so hard to keep water affordable, at a penny per gallon, while still investing in the treatment plants, storage, and testing that keep your water safe. And it’s why, when we plan for the future, we’re planning for your future and your kids’ future in these communities.
When you pay your bill, you’re not just buying water. You’re investing in a system you help own — and in the rural way of life that depends on it.
Thank you
The people who dreamed, risked, and worked to build this cooperative over the past four decades did it because they believed rural communities deserved the same safe, reliable water as anyone else. That belief is still alive today, and it lives in every member.
So this Thanksgiving, from all of us at EJ Water to all of you: thank you. Thank you for your trust, for choosing this cooperative, and for being part of something bigger than a water bill. We’re grateful to serve you, and we’re proud that you own it right alongside us.
Here’s to the water that’s always running, the neighbors who make it possible, and many more years of growing together.
Happy Thanksgiving from your EJ Water family.
