In this episode of The Co-op Heroes Podcast, we sit down with Rachel Johnson, CEO of Cherryland Electric Cooperative.

Rachel speaks candidly about her unusual path to the corner office, starting as a grassroots advocate at Cherryland in 2012, moving into member services and communications, and eventually earning an MBA in finance to prepare herself for the CEO seat. She reflects on the value of intellectual curiosity, self awareness, and building a leadership team that complements her own blind spots.

Six months into her tenure as Cherryland's first female CEO, Rachel was diagnosed with breast cancer. She opens up about navigating that diagnosis while leading a cooperative, choosing to be public about her treatment, and how her board and team rallied around her in ways that strengthened trust across the organization. She also shares how leaning on her own intellectual curiosity, researching her diagnosis and eventually sharing what she learned with online breast cancer communities, helped her cope during treatment.

The conversation turns to what makes cooperatives different, including the mutual aid Cherryland provided to neighboring Michigan co-ops during a devastating ice storm, and closes with Rachel's advice for women considering a path to co-op leadership.

Featured topics:

• Rachel's path from grassroots advocate to Cherryland's first female CEO

• Getting an MBA in finance to prepare for the CEO role

• Being diagnosed with breast cancer six months after taking the job

• How her board and team responded and what it did for trust

• Cherryland's mutual aid support during the northern Michigan ice storm

• Advice for women pursuing leadership roles in the cooperative space

Rachel and Pablo close by reflecting on what sets the cooperative model apart: a culture built on service, trust, and people who show up for each other, not shareholders or competition.

This is a conversation about vulnerability in leadership, resilience through crisis, and why the people who make up electric cooperatives are the reason so many, including Rachel, never want to work anywhere else.

Thanks for listening to The Co-op Heroes Podcast. Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts to hear more stories from leaders across the electric cooperative industry.