Three seats are up for grabs this Saturday on the Ben Lomand board of directors during the company’s annual meeting at Warren County High School.In Area 9, which serves Warren County, Jeff Flatt and Randal Gilliam are vying for the seat.In Area 5, which serves Van Buren County, Donald Hollingsworth and Donald Hillis are in contention for the seat.In Area 4, which serves White and DeKalb counties, Bill Hickey, Randall Day and Stanley Neal are fighting for the seat.Ben Lomand general manager and CEO Lisa Cope attributes the interest in the board of directors to Ben Lomand’s presence in the community.“There is more awareness about these seats than ever before because people see how our fiber implementation plan can really be an important aspect to the economic development of a community,” said Cope. “Fiber makes our areas relevant and we have over 50 percent fiber coverage in our service area right now.”Cope declined to say how much board members are paid for their service, only saying it was in line with what other utilities in the region offer for compensation.“I would think people want to serve to help firmly establish strategic goals for the cooperative and that would be their motivation,” said Cope.Ben Lomand’s board of directors has nine members. One-third of the board, or three members, are elected every year.Because voting machines will be used Saturday, Cope says election winners will be announced that day.