Local non-profits receive grants through ORU

Feb 28 2018 | by James Taylor

Thanks to Central Electric’s Operation Round Up program, powered by donations from Central Electric members, several nonprofits are benefiting from grant funding. This quarter $24,000 is being put back into the surrounding communities to provide assistance for worthy projects that provide vital service needs. Grants were awarded to the following groups:

  1. Another Choice for Black Children (Lee) – Funded $3,000 to help renovate a portion of the office facility to use as an educational resource area for the children while staff processes paper work for permanent housing.
  2. Buddy Back Pack Program (Harnett) – Funded $3,000 to purchase food for 13 elementary schools in Harnett County.
  3. Chatham County 4-H– Funded $3,000 to provide need based scholarships for campers to attend 4-H summer camps.
  4. Chatham Co. Literacy, Inc. – Funded $3,000 to help provide education of soft learning skills to a growing base of adult learners to help them become more employable.
  5. Lee County High School Junior ROTC – Funded $1,500 to help with costs associated with the annual Military Ball.
  6. Lee County Schools Academically Intellectually Gifted (AIG) Dept. – Funded $1,500 for 2018 Kaleidoscope Program scholarships to help deserving students participate in the trip to Washington, D.C.
  7. Project Graduation 2018 (Chatham) – Funded $3,000 to provide entertainment at the alcohol free graduation event for Chatham County students.
  8. Southern Lee High School FFA – Funded $3,000 for the State Leadership Conference held at White Lake each summer, food and bedding for the wild animal lab and the purchase of 10 official jackets.
  9. Western Harnett Lions Club – Funded $3,000 to send four campers to Camp Dogwood, a week-long camp for the blind.

“The Central Electric members provide a great service to our local communities through their generous donations to the Operation Round Up program,” said Nancy Gust, Central Electric Member Care Trust Administrator. “A few extras cents from a large group of people really does make a big impact and it has shown over the last two and half years through the amount of grants provided through the program.”

Operation Round Up is a volunteer program in which Central Electric members can choose to “round up” their electric bill to the next whole dollar each month. Voluntary contributions are made to the Central Electric Member Care Trust and grants are awarded for worthy projects by the Member Care Trust Board of Directors. Applications for 2018 second-quarter grant opportunities must be submitted by May 1. Grant recipients will be announced following the board meeting on May 17. For more information on Central Electric’s Operation Round Up program, visit the “Community” tab.