February 2011
Members Helping Members Thanks to nearly 25,000 members participating in Operation Round Up®, the Blue Ridge Electric Members Foundation is helping local communities in two ways: to provide immediate crisis heating assistance needs, and for longer range needs to improve our area’s quality of life. This balanced approach provides a healthy, sustainable way to benefit members now and for future generations.
To learn more about the Blue Ridge Electric Members Foundation, to participate in the Operation Round Up programs, or to apply for a foundation grant, please visit BlueRidgeEMC.com.
The Members Foundation is guided by a Foundation Advisory Committee comprised of members throughout the cooperative’s service area. These members help oversee the Foundation, review grant applications, and make funding recommendations to the Foundation’s board of directors who have the ultimate oversight of the Foundation. The Foundation benefits members by using 100 percent of donations to: provide crisis heating assistance; award grants that improve local quality of life; and fund weatherization efforts for qualifying homes. In 2010, the Members Foundation gave $189,000 to help 1,500 members with electric and fuel bill assistance. For longer-term efforts, $88,000 during two
different grant cycles was awarded to local not-for-profit programs. The latest grants were announced in December and are listed again inside this newsletter. While administration for the Foundation is covered by the cooperative, funding comes primarily from members through the Operation Round Up and Operation Round Up® Plus programs. Participating members volunteer to either round up their monthly electric bill or add an additional dollar or more. Fortunately, more than 35 percent of members are “rounding up” at an average of fifty cents per month. Funding also comes from a portion of the profits of the cooperative’s heating fuels subsidiary, Blue Ridge Energies, and this has also assisted the Foundation in meeting needs. Through the power of cooperation, Blue Ridge Electric members are helping make the Members Foundation and the Operation Round Up programs a success. This spirit of neighbors helping neighbors not only benefits our communities right now, it’s also creating a legacy to build on for years to come.
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