Last Updated on July 30, 2025 2:21 pm
Doug Johnson, retired chief executive officer of Blue Ridge Energy, was recently presented with North Carolina’s highest civilian honor, the Order of the Long Leaf Pine award, by Board President Jeff Joines.
Since 1963, North Carolina’s governors have reserved the award as the highest honor for persons who have made significant contributions to the state and their local communities that are above and beyond the call of duty and which have made an impact and strengthened North Carolina.
“Today it is my honor to represent Gov. Josh Stein in making this presentation of the Long Leaf Pine to Douglas Wayne Johnson,” said Joines during a regular meeting of the cooperative’s Board of Directors.
Johnson accepted the award by saying: “I deeply appreciate this, and I want to say thank you to Blue Ridge Energy for the opportunity to live my career in a way that helps people have a better life. As a young man going to college at App State, I joined the Boone Jaycees,” he continued. “The last line of their creed says: ‘service to humanity is the greatest work of life,’ and I still believe today that serving people is truly the greatest work of life. Hopefully, this award is not so much about me but the opportunity you gave me to do that through this great cooperative,” Johnson said.
The award concludes Johnson’s 47-year career with Blue Ridge Energy, spent improving the cooperative’s service, reliability, member care, and access to affordable electricity through his management of wholesale power, helping advocate for state and national energy policy, and the creation of two wholly owned subsidiaries and a Members Foundation that gives back to local communities. Well respected as a state and national energy industry leader, Johnson placed a high priority on volunteering his time and expertise over the years to numerous local boards and committees devoted to helping the cooperative’s communities thrive through economic development, access to quality health care and education, and many other efforts to improve quality of life, now and for future generations.
Doug Johnson with Order of the Long Leaf Pine award (background: Jeff Joines, Blue Ridge Energy Board President, and Katie Woodle, CEO of Blue Ridge Energy)
