Dec. 13—The torch has officially been passed at Star Communications, with one Star stalwart retiring and another taking the reins.

Donna Bullard has stepped in to her new position as executive vice president and chief executive officer at Star Communications as Bullard officially takes the reins on Dec. 1 with the retirement of Jeffrey Nethercutt, who held the position since August 2017.

A Cumberland County native, Bullard has been employed at Star Telephone Membership Corporation since 1998, serving many positions within the corporation over those 24 years, including in Marketing, Information Technology, Regulatory Affairs and Finance.

"I am grateful for the opportunities STMC has afforded me throughout my career and I am proud to lead our talented workforce in the communities in which we live and serve," stated Bullard.

Bullard obtained her bachelor's degree in business administration from Mount Olive College (now University of Mount Olive).

"The Board and I are pleased to promote Mrs. Bullard to Executive Vice President and CEO," Star Telephone Membership Corporation Board of Directors President Thurman L. Smith stated in a press release last month. "Star Telephone is extremely fortunate to have an individual who has the qualifications and expertise to fill this position from within the organization. We look forward to providing continued and uninterrupted service under Mrs. Bullard's leadership."

Bullard's naming as the new CEO means another tenured employee with assume leadership.

Nethercutt retired after 28 years with the company. He was named to the position of assistant general manager in late 2016 and assumed those responsibilities at the beginning of 2017. He was promoted to the company's executive vice president and general manager in summer 2017 following the retirement of the longtime face of Star, Lyman Horne.

Bullard, previously the assistant GM, was tapped to move into the executive vice president and general manager position upon Nethercutt's exit.

Star Telephone Membership Corporation, headquartered in Clinton, N.C. is a member-owned non-profit cooperative providing telephone, internet, and video services in the rural parts of five Southeastern North Carolina counties.

In 1959, the Cape Fear Telephone and Cumberland-Sampson Telephone cooperatives merged to form Star Telephone Membership Corporation, a member-owned nonprofit governed by a board of directors. In 2014, the Star family of companies merged into Star Communications, which today serves customers in Sampson, Bladen, Duplin, Columbus and Cumberland counties.

Bullard takes over a company that has made significant strides in recent years to serve customers, notably through its concerted effort to extend broadband across all coverage areas.

At the end of 2019, Star officials announced that a $3.3 million GREAT (Growing Rural Economics with Access to Technology) grant would bring faster Internet service to more than 400 addresses in Sampson and Bladen counties thanks to the award to Star Communications.

Gov. Roy Cooper and the North Carolina General Assembly reached a deal in mid-December 2019 to spend $30 million for GREAT. As one of 11 recipients, Star was selected to expand broadband expansion in the undeserved areas within the City of Clinton through StarVision, Inc., a subsidiary and the Abbottsburg area of Bladen County.

The grant was to expand high speed Internet service for more than 1,400 addresses in Bladen County and 442 places in Sampson County, with Star Communications to provide $1.4 million in matching funds for these projects — resulting in a total investment of $4.7 million for the communities.

At the end of 2021, Star Communications announced its mission to advance communities and extend its fiber footprint had taken another giant step forward. A $2.3 million USDA Community Connect Grant was received to construct approximately 120 miles of infrastructure to build a Fiber-to-the-Premise network, impacting 1,800 residences and 15 businesses in northern Sampson County.

The project was scheduled for completion by 2024.

"I believe in the cooperative principle and STMC's corporate motto of 'Neighbors Serving Neighbors,'" Bullard stated upon taking the reins. "I will do my best to continue the efforts of those that have served before me to afford rural America the same amenities as their urban counterparts."

Editor Chris Berendt can be reached at 910-592-8137 ext. 2587.