ENERGYUNITED FOUNDATION AWARDS $7,575 ‘DRIVE TO SHINE’ DONATION TO HEARTS AND HANDS FOOD PANTRY

STATESVILLE, N.C. – The EnergyUnited Foundation recently awarded a grant in the amount of $7,575 to Hearts and Hands Food Pantry of Huntersville in connection with the organization’s recently announced ‘Drive to Shine’ campaign. This is just the first of three donations that will be given to citizens of Mecklenburg Country in connection with the $100,000 campaign to address rising levels of food insecurity in the cooperative’s service area.

“We are thankful to receive this donation from the EnergyUnited Foundation at such an important time,” said Kenya Joseph, co-founder of Hearts and Hands Food Pantry. “We always want to be a source of light for those in our community and this donation will certainly help provide hope to many families.”

Hearts and Hands Food Pantry was also co-founded by Sandra Marks, mother of Kenya and Kim Joseph. Sandra, Kenya and Kim have faithfully served the community through their work at Hearts and Hands since 2016. In the past year, they have seen the demand for their services increase by more than 700 percent, so they are especially grateful for organizations like the EnergyUnited Foundation who are willing to help.

The EnergyUnited Foundation will be awarding an additional $93,000 to 24 recipients in each county within its service area over the next two weeks. The organization is hopeful that the campaign will provide the critical assistance needed in its communities, while also inspiring others to extend a helping hand.

“2020 was a difficult year for many families that experienced layoffs, furloughs or wage reductions,” said Debra Citta, administrator of the EnergyUnited Foundation. “The lesson we learned is that no family is immune from suffering or from loss. In such times, people need to see others shine by demonstrating empathy and by giving back to their community.”

The EnergyUnited Foundation is a voluntary, member-funded non-profit organization supported by EnergyUnited’s Operation Round-Up program.  Nearly 70,000 EnergyUnited members choose to participate in the program by ‘rounding up’ their electric bills each month.  The maximum monthly contribution for an individual member with one account is 99 cents.  Each of these small contributions are pooled together in a single fund managed by the EnergyUnited Foundation to support needy individuals, families, and non-profit organizations like Hearts and Hands Food Pantry that complete an application explaining the reason and purpose for their requested grant.

For more information about Hearts and Hands Food Pantry, please visit https://www.heartsandhandsfoodpantry.com/.

About EnergyUnited  

EnergyUnited Electric Membership Corporation (EMC) is the largest electric cooperative in North Carolina serving nearly 130,000 metering points. Headquartered in Statesville, EnergyUnited provides electric service in portions of nineteen counties in west central North Carolina which include Alexander, Cabarrus, Caldwell, Catawba, Davidson, Davie, Forsyth, Gaston, Guilford, Iredell, Lincoln, Mecklenburg, Montgomery, Randolph, Rockingham, Rowan, Stokes, Wilkes and Yadkin. To learn more about The EnergyUnited Foundation and EnergyUnited’s Operation Round-Up program, visit www.energyunited.com/givingback.