Alabama Power Generation Appreciation Day honors employee volunteerism
Food sorting and backpack stuffing at Feeding the Gulf Coast Food Bank. (L-R): Stephanie Bolerjack, Danny Bolerjack, Aaron Coggin, Adam Davis, Teresa Snow, Rhonda Matthews, Daryl Stewart, Amanda Lofton, Brandon Dunagan, Thad Murphy, Albert Miller, Sharon Meier and Stacy Simmons.
Alabama Power is recognizing its Generation employees who are making a powerful contribution through volunteerism.
The company held its inaugural Generation Appreciation Day on Wednesday, Oct. 18, showcasing the important work done every day by employees at Alabama Power’s generating facilities to keep the lights on for customers. The day also shined a light on the community service and volunteerism of Generation teams across the state.
Amanda Lofton is just one shining example. A Generation employee at Alabama Power’s Plant Barry in Mobile County, Lofton serves as state president for the Alabama Power Service Organization (APSO), whose 6,200 members in nine chapters contribute tens of thousands of hours of their personal time annually to support nonprofits and community organizations.
“Volunteerism is at the heart of what we do,” Lofton said. “Through a diverse range of projects, our Generation employees not only generate electricity, but also create a profound positive impact.”
Employees from every Alabama Power generating facility – including the company’s fossil fuel plants, hydroelectric dams and Plant Farley nuclear plant – are committed to community service, through APSO and its many community projects, as well as other volunteer and nonprofit work.
Here are just a few examples of community projects conducted this year by the Generation teams through APSO chapters across the state:
Barry Electricity Generating Plant: Feeding the Gulf Coast. Over the summer, 1,900 pounds of donated food and 1,200 backpack meals were assembled and delivered to Feeding the Gulf Coast. The project is conducted quarterly, with more than 2,000 pounds of food typically sorted per visit. During the food-sorting process, volunteers inspect and sort food donations for distribution, which includes checking expiration dates and examining cans for rust and missing labels. After each inspection, similar items are boxed and sent to the food bank. Volunteers also prepare boxes of food for area senior centers and fill backpacks to help meet the food security needs of children at local schools.
Barry Electric Generating Plant: Lee Elementary School. Volunteers endured scorching temperatures and humidity in August to prepare the Lee Elementary School outdoor science lab for the upcoming school year. Students spent the first two weeks of school learning about gardening and proper safety procedures. Planting started around week 3, after students were settled. They planted vegetables, lettuce and cucumbers. Volunteers spent the day preparing gardening beds by removing weeds and adding 198 bags of potting soil.
Barry Electric Generating Plant: Mulherin Home. In July, volunteers raised $7,000 during a bowling tournament for Mulherin Home in Mobile. Nearly 40 volunteers contributed 358 hours in making the tournament a success. Mulherin Home provides a loving place to live for individuals with congenital developmental disabilities. The home can house up to 34 individuals. The home also provides residents with nutritious meals, limited nursing care and activities.
Miller Electric Generating Plant: Alabama Baptist Children’s Home. APSO members at Plant Miller in Jefferson County volunteered their services to assist the Alabama Baptist Children’s Home (ABCH). From the spring through late summer, gutters were cleaned, concrete surfaces were pressure-washed, landscaping was refreshed, an outdoor deck was stained, and new appliances and light fixtures were installed. Volunteer teams comprised of 20 people from various Plant Miller departments.
Plant Gaston and Central Alabama Generating Station: Wilsonville and Jemison Elementary schools. In the spring, volunteers from Plant Gaston in Shelby County and Central Alabama Generating Station in Autauga County took an unused area in the center of Wilsonville Elementary School and transformed it into an outdoor learning area. The space provides students with a place to learn outside the classroom while enjoying nature. To create the space, volunteers built decks, poured concrete walkways, and added mulch and colorful flowers to create a beautiful area for the students to enjoy.
Over the summer, volunteers from Central Alabama Generating Station raised funds to provide a swing set for special needs students at Jemison Elementary School. Plant employees spent a day installing the swing set in preparation for the new school year. The returning students quickly embraced the new playground equipment.
Plant Gaston employees Jessica Kennedy (left) and Tabetha Lemonds built planter boxes for Wilsonville Elementary School. (contributed)
Plant Farley: Christmas Project and United Way. Volunteers at Plant Farley and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers come together each year to lead a Christmas project that partners with local agencies for families in need. Money is collected throughout the year at the plant to provide the families with toys, clothes and food items for a dinner. Proceeds from a cornhole tournament sponsored by the North American Young Generation in Nuclear also help fund the project.
Additionally, more than $169,000 was raised for the Plant Farley annual United Way campaign. A pickleball tournament and other activities helped support the fundraising effort, as well as employee contributions.
A pickleball tournament and other activities helped support the fundraising effort, along with employee contributions for United Way. (contributed)
Hydro employee community service: Renew Our Rivers and more. Employees at the company’s hydro plants are involved in a host of community and service projects. A big one is their support for the Renew Our Rivers campaign and the multiple river and creek cleanups held in communities throughout the spring and fall.
Hydro employees have also take part in other events around Alabama reservoirs that support nonprofits, tourism and recreation, and community projects, such as the Water Cycle ride around Lake Martin that helped fund water projects in Guatemala, and the Dam Ride at Lay Lake that provided funds for muscular dystrophy research.
Hydro employees also have been involved in supporting the Alabama Scenic River Trail and the Great Alabama 650 paddle race that draws competitors from across the nation.
Employees at Jordan Dam have built a special relationship with nearby Holtville Elementary School, purchasing bicycles that were used as prize incentives to encourage better attendance. Employees also have supported the school’s students at Christmas.
Supporting Holtville Elementary School: Montreall Hearn, Jordan Dam superintendent (left), and Blake Stephens, Jordan Dam plant auxiliary (right), deliver bikes to Holtville Principal Chris Holley. (contributed)
To learn more about Alabama Power employee and retiree volunteerism, please visit powerofgood.com and click on “Volunteers.”
