Putting Our Energy Into Our Communities Community Report

Transcription

1 Putting Our Energy Into Our Communities 2015 Community Report

2 NV Energy and the NV Energy Foundation are energizing the community. In 2015, we donated more than $5.4 million to support over 400 nonprofits statewide. These contributions were funded by the company, not its customers. NV Energy funds nonprofit organizations in its service territory that support public education, protection of the environment, youth development, arts and multicultural outreach, and health and human services Charitable Giving & Community Event Sponsorship $5.4 MILLION And the best source of energy comes from our employees, who last year, gave more than 36,500 hours to nonprofit organizations statewide. Education and Youth Development Arts and Multi-Cultural Health and Human Services Environment Community Event and Sponsorship Our employees and our company take great pride in the work we do to support our communities, said Tony Sanchez, Senior Vice President of Government and Community Strategy. We strive to create meaningful partnerships with nonprofits throughout Nevada in order to make a lasting, positive impact. Tony Sanchez Senior Vice President of Government and Community Strategy ENVIRONMENT The Nature of Art NV Energy and the Nature Conservancy have maintained a strong, ongoing partnership that has allowed NV Energy employees to take an active role in restoring and preserving the environment. For many years, employee volunteer efforts have been focused on the Independence Lake Preserve. This year, the Nature Conservancy s Nature of Art project created an opportunity for volunteers to gather at McCarran Ranch on the lower Truckee River and help create a beautiful new wildlife habitat that will serve the dual purpose of sustaining local wildlife and improving water quality by reducing erosion and filtering pollutants. NV Energy employees create a beautiful new wildlife habitat on the Lower Truckee River.

3 From Military Service to Green Service NV Energy teamed up with the Conservation Lands Foundation s From Military Service to Green Service initiative to provide opportunities to veterans actively searching for a new career path. The program encourages newly separated military veterans to gain environmental work experience and was made possible by a $75,000 grant from the NV Energy Foundation. As a result of the project, five post-9/11 military veterans were employed full-time for three months in partnership with the Nevada Conservation Corps and its supervisory staff. The veteran crew not only completed an ambitious work plan of on-the-ground restoration projects, they also participated in additional trainings designed to advance their skills and offer a leg up towards further employment in natural resources. Partnering organizations and government officials gather at Sloan Canyon National Conservation Area to launch From Military Service to Green Service. MULTICULTURAL / ARTS BCA 10 Award NV Energy and the NV Energy Foundation were named as one of the 2015 top 10 businesses in the U.S. for helping community arts to thrive. Americans for the Arts, the nation s leading nonprofit for advancing the arts and arts education, selected NV Energy as part of the Business Committee for the Arts awards known as the BCA 10. With $3.4 million devoted to arts and culture initiatives throughout the state, NV Energy and the NV Energy Foundation are extremely honored to be the first Nevada company selected for this prestigious award. Summer Camp Empowerment NV Energy is proud to sponsor an eight-week program for community youth through The West Las Vegas Arts Center Performing and Visual Arts Summer Camp for Kids (PVAC). The PVAC provides youth with opportunities for civic engagement and social justice projects through the disciplines of arts education. NV Energy President and CEO, Paul Caudill, receives the BCA-10 award from Americans for the Arts and the Business Committee for the Arts as an exemplary business for contributing to the arts. Youth from the PVAC perform their final summer musical.

4 YOUTH AND EDUCATION Supporting Science and Literacy The NV Energy Foundation funded a grant with Sierra Nevada Journeys to support Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math programs (STEM). Sierra Nevada Journeys sponsors Family Science Nights in at-risk Reno area elementary schools. Not only do these events encourage whole-family engagement in education, they also afford the opportunity for NV Energy to supply volunteers to increase the impact of its financial support and to make a big difference in the lives of children. NV Energy also took part in a variety of education initiatives and employee volunteer activities in northern Nevada to reinforce United Way s focus on literacy. NV Energy volunteers also support Junior Achievement with an emphasis on financial literacy, and the NV Energy employee team took home the first place trophy in the Northern Nevada Literacy Council s Spellbinder event. Powerful Partnership Scholarships NV Energy gives Nevada high school seniors a little help toward the next step in their education through the Powerful Partnership Scholarship program. In 2015, NV Energy awarded 108 Powerful Partnership Scholarships of $1,000 each to Nevada high school seniors who have demonstrated leadership in both academics and community service. The selection process is very competitive for these one-time scholarships that can be used at any accredited university, college or trade school. Scholarship recipients are chosen from communities throughout southern and northern Nevada marked the 15th anniversary of the Powerful Partnership Scholarship program. Since the program s inception in 2000, NV Energy has awarded nearly $800,000 in scholarships statewide, and looks forward to continuing to invest in the future of Nevada s youth. Teach for America Our support of Teach for America (TFA) is an example of our Foundation s giving priority to fund education and ensure a strong community. NV Energy donated $75,000 to TFA s efforts to end educational inequity in the Las Vegas area through recruiting a diverse corps of recent college graduates and professionals to teach in local classrooms.we are proud to continue our partnership with them to help bring more teachers to Clark County schools and benefit an even greater number of students in need. Southern and Northern Nevada Powerful Partnership Scholarship Receptions. Doretha Easler, Manager of Community Relations, participates in the annual Teach for America Week.

5 HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health The NV Energy Foundation is proud to partner with Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health to create the NV Energy Chair for Brain Health Education. Funded by a five-year, $1.25 million grant from the NV Energy Foundation, the chair will help the Clinic advance its efforts in improving the quality of education for Nevada s current and future health care professionals. NV Energy Foundation and Cleveland Clinic Lou Ruvo Center for Brain Health representatives celebrate the $1.25 million donation to the center. United All the Way NV Energy employees continue to set the bar high for United Way giving. This year, NV Energy had the highest employee participation of any prior company campaign, and exceeded last year s contributions, raising more than $1.3 million for United Way. The funds support early childhood education, families in need, and ensure a meal is delivered where it is needed. This achievement would not have been possible without the partnership of IBEW Locals 1245 and 396 as well as the volunteers who worked to create fun events as part of the campaign. Urban Roots The NV Energy Foundation provided a grant to Urban Roots, an organization with a mission to grow healthy minds, bodies and communities through sustainable food systems. The grant allowed Urban Roots to extend their outreach to rural and tribal communities in northern Nevada. Urban Roots worked with Natchez Elementary School and Pyramid Lake High School located on the Pyramid Lake Paiute Tribe reservation as well as Smith Valley Elementary school. Educators from Urban Roots instructed students, teachers, parents, administrators and community volunteers about effective gardening techniques including how to build a greenhouse, hydroponics design, and recognizing the importance of honey bees. NV Energy President and CEO Paul Caudill meets with employees during the annual Paul Crawl event to encourage participation in our United Way campaign. An Urban Roots staff member describes the anatomy of a honey bee.

6 BEYOND THE BIG CITIES In the Rurals NV Energy employees have gone above and beyond this year to support Nevada s rural communities. Volunteers supported events including the Elko and Fernley Safe Trick or Treat nights, the Fallon Christmas Eve community dinner, rural community visits with the Food Bank of Northern Nevada Mobile Food Pantry to share information on low income energy assistance programs, as well as helping with the Boys and Girls Club of Mason Valley fundraiser - A Night in the Country. Holiday drives for the Pershing County Senior Center and the Hawthorne Toys for Tots toy drive donated holiday gifts to spread a little extra cheer to those in need during the holiday season. NV Energy Hawthorne employees present a donation to Toys for Tots. Colorado River Food Bank The NV Energy Foundation stepped up in the fight against hunger by awarding a $5,000 foundation grant to the Colorado River Food Bank, a nonprofit volunteer organization that provides food and clothing assistance to low-income and underprivileged residents in Laughlin, Nevada and Bullhead City in the Mohave Valley region of Arizona. This grant gave the food bank the opportunity to grow and thrive in its mission to ensure that no local resident ever goes hungry. The Colorado River Food Bank was able to restock its food shelves, which in return, helped reach 3,831 food insecure individuals. NV Energy President and CEO Paul Caudill, presents a $5000 check to the Colorado River Food Bank. AWARDS / RECOGNITION NV Energy was presented with the Down Syndrome Organization of Southern Nevada s Community Impact Award. NV Energy received the 2015 Community Champion Awards from United Way of Southern Nevada.