Donations are part of the FirstEnergy
Foundation's annual holiday philanthropic campaign
GREENSBURG, Pa., Dec. 19,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The FirstEnergy Foundation has
granted surprise "Gifts of the Season" totaling $70,000 to six local Pennsylvania nonprofits that are working to
make lives better in communities served by FirstEnergy Pennsylvania
(FE PA), a subsidiary of FirstEnergy
Corp. (NYSE: FE) doing business as Met-Ed, Penn Power, Penelec and
West Penn Power.
Watch a video explaining how these FirstEnergy Foundation
grants will strengthen Pennsylvania communities on
FirstEnergy's YouTube channel.
John Hawkins, FirstEnergy's
President of Pennsylvania:
"We're proud to support these organizations because their missions
align with our commitment to diverse, equitable and inclusive
communities where everyone feels safe, valued, included and
respected. The recipients were chosen by employees who identified
organizations in their local areas that do extraordinary work to
strengthen the community and enhance the lives of vulnerable and
underserved populations."
The recipients of this year's gifts are organizations that
provide support services to underserved and vulnerable individuals
of all ages across Pennsylvania.
They include:
Met-Ed service area recipients
- Barrio Alegria ($10,000) – Barrio Alegria is a
community transformation organization located in Reading that utilizes the arts as a platform
for community engagement and the development of social and
multicultural awareness. Barrio Alegria uses dance, acting and
painting to build, empower and strengthen communities through
individuals and is also involved with neighborhood cleanups and
micro-business development.
- Glenn Hope Care Farm
($10,000) – Situated on 43
acres in Felton, York County, Glenn
Hope Care Farm promotes the physical and mental health of
veterans and their families through on-farm activities such as
horticulture therapy, animal husbandry, agricultural classes and
special events. Everything grown and produced on the farm is done
so by veterans. A portion of the nutritious food produced on
the farm – produce, free-range eggs, poultry, pork and grass-fed
beef – is donated to veterans and veteran organizations.
Penelec service area recipient
- Vallonia Industries ($20,000) – Vallonia Industries is a
pre-vocational facility in Meadville, Crawford
County, that has operated a safe workshop for adults with
intellectual disabilities for more than 60 years. Vallonia serves
individuals from Crawford County
and surrounding areas, helping them to develop marketable
employment skills and teaching useful workplace behaviors and
traits such as getting to work on time, taking and following
directions and working well with others. Vallonia Industries
provides hand-packaging and small-parts assembly to area
businesses. Vallonia's clients also volunteer with area non-profit
organizations – including bell ringing for the Salvation Army – to
help them integrate into the community.
Penn Power service area recipient
- The Blind Association of Butler and Armstrong ($10,000) – The Blind Association's
mission is to raise awareness about blindness and provide services
that educate and empower individuals with visual impairments or
blindness to lead independent and enriched lives. The Blind
Association provides life-skills training, vision screenings in
cooperation with Lions Clubs, case management, chore services,
support groups and social activities, and employment and employment
training. The association also provides door-to-door transportation
for its clients to medical facilities, stores, banks and other
services.
West Penn Power service area recipients
- Achieva Support ($10,000)
– Achieva is a non-profit organization located in southwestern
Pennsylvania that provides
lifelong support to people with disabilities and their families in
Allegheny, Beaver and Westmoreland Counties. Its services range from
early intervention therapies and employment support to special
needs trusts and support in the home and community. Achieva offers
clients employment with its janitorial and cleaning services and
its wooden pallet/shipping container manufacturing facility in
Bridgeville. By promoting
inclusive hiring practices and facilitating job placements, Achieva
empowers people to build fulfilling careers, gain independence and
actively participate in their communities.
- Centre LGBT+ ($10,000) – Centre LGBT+ is committed to
bringing neighbors together through LGBT+ education, advocacy and
activities in the Centre County
region to create an inclusive community. The organization operates
a community center at 204 E. Calder Way in downtown State College. Community members founded the
grassroots organization in 2014 to help prevent LGBT+ teen
suicides. Centre LGBT+ offers support groups, social groups,
after-school programs, a library and other resources including a
gender-affirming clothing closet.
The "Gifts of the Season" initiative was created in 2016 to
support programs and nonprofit organizations that align with
FirstEnergy's core value of diversity, equity and inclusion. Since
its inception, the campaign has awarded more than $1.1 million to nonprofit organizations that work
to strengthen communities through a diverse lens.
To be considered for a gift, the entity must be a
first-time FirstEnergy Foundation grant recipient and the
entity or at least 51% of its work must fall under one or more of
the following diverse categories:
- Service disabled/veteran-owned business enterprise
- Disability-owned business enterprise
- Minority business enterprise
- Lesbian/gay/bisexual/transgender/queer-owned business
- Woman business enterprise
Photos of the Gifts of the Season being presented to
organizations by FirstEnergy representatives are available
for Flickr.
The FirstEnergy Foundation provides support to 501(c)(3)
tax-exempt nonprofits, including health and human services
agencies, educational organizations, cultural and arts programs and
institutions, and civic groups in areas served by FirstEnergy's
electric operating companies and in areas where the company
conducts business.
Met-Ed serves approximately 592,000 customers within 3,300
square miles of eastern and southeastern Pennsylvania. Follow Met-Ed on X @Met
Ed and on Facebook at facebook.com/MetEdElectric.
Penelec serves approximately 597,000 customers within 17,600
square miles of northern and central Pennsylvania. Follow Penelec on X @Penelec and
on Facebook at facebook.com/PenelecElectric.
Penn Power serves approximately 173,000 customers in all or
parts of Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Crawford, Lawrence and Mercer counties in western Pennsylvania. Follow Penn Power on X
@Penn_Power, on Facebook at facebook.com/PennPower, and online at
pennpower.com.
West Penn Power serves approximately 737,000 customers in 24
counties within central and southwestern Pennsylvania. Follow West Penn Power on X
@W_Penn_Power and on Facebook at
www.facebook.com/WestPennPower.
FirstEnergy is dedicated to integrity, safety, reliability and
operational excellence. Its electric distribution companies form
one of the nation's largest investor-owned electric systems,
serving more than six million customers in Ohio, Pennsylvania, New
Jersey, West Virginia,
Maryland and New York. The company's transmission
subsidiaries operate more than 24,000 miles of transmission lines
that connect the Midwest and Mid-Atlantic regions. Follow
FirstEnergy online at firstenergycorp.com and on X
@FirstEnergyCorp.
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SOURCE FirstEnergy Corp.