Grace Grell wins Minnesota Cooperative Heroes Award for community service

Grace Grell’s volunteer work, which began in her teenage years and continued into adulthood, earned her Minnesota’s Cooperative Heroes Award and put a local name on a statewide program built around everyday community impact.

The award was launched in October 2025 during National Cooperative Month by Minnesota’s 44 distribution electric cooperatives and Minnesota Touchstone Energy cooperatives. Judges select three winners across the state, and the top prize includes $1,000 for a local nonprofit or cause of the winner’s choice. Second and third place each receive $500.

That money matters in places like Perham and the rest of Otter Tail County because Minnesota’s electric cooperatives serve 85% of the state and reach every county. The program is meant to recognize people whose service has a real effect in their communities, not just those who collect honors, and Grell’s story fits that mold through years of steady volunteerism.

The local significance also runs through Lakes Community Cooperative, the Perham-based co-op tied to Grell’s award. Built from roots as a creamery, the cooperative has expanded into propane, feed, milk hauling, bulk fuel, natural gas, HVAC, auto shops, convenience stores, the Perham Meat Market and the Perham Motel. That kind of mix shows how co-op leadership can translate into services residents use in ordinary ways, from heating homes and moving farm products to buying groceries, fueling vehicles and keeping businesses running.

The award cycle for this year has closed. The 2026 winner will be announced at the Minnesota Rural Electric Association Annual Meeting on March 18, 2026, and the next nomination period is set to open in October 2026. For Otter Tail County, Grell’s recognition puts a familiar local value on the statewide stage: service that shows up in the places people shop, work, heat their homes and depend on every day.