Sparklight®, a member of the Cable One family of brands, recently awarded a $2,500 grant to People Who Care through the company’s Charitable Giving Fund, which launched in January 2021. Through this program, the company awarded more than $100,000 in grants earlier this summer to 30 nonprofit organizations across its 24-state footprint.
People Who Care, a volunteer-based organization that assists adults physically unable to drive to continue living independently in their homes by providing essential transportation as well as help meet their food needs, received a grant from Sparklight to support its shopping services and help reduce food insecurities in this often overlooked vulnerable population.
“By assisting neighbors in meeting their food needs we remove one more challenge that would prevent them from doing so. Also, the time spent between neighbors and volunteers adds a human connection to their lives — truly touching hearts and lifting spirits,” said Cj Meldahl, People Who Care Executive Director. “This grant will further help our organization meet our neighbors’ food needs and support our grocery shopping services. In 2020, even during the COVID-19 pandemic, our volunteers gave more than 16,000 hours of their time and completed more than 2,000 shopping services, which saved our neighbors more than $7,700 in grocery delivery fees and even more in taxi fees.”
The Charitable Giving Fund, which will annually award $200,000 in grants to local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations served by Sparklight and the other Cable One family of brands (Fidelity Communications, Clearwave®, ValuNet Fiber and Hargray), concentrates support in the following priority areas:
- Education and Digital Literacy
- Food Insecurity
- Community Development
Nonprofit organizations will have the opportunity to apply for a grant during open application periods each spring and fall. Applications for fall 2021 grants will open between October 1 – 31, 2021.
“Through our support of these nonprofit organizations, we are helping to build strong and vibrant communities, improve quality of life, and make a positive difference in the communities where we live and work,” said Julie Laulis, Cable One President and CEO.
The Charitable Giving Fund is an extension of the company’s existing corporate social responsibility efforts, which include:
- Chromebooks for Kids, an initiative in which the company donates Chromebooks to Title I schools across its footprint. To date the company has donated more than 1,500 Chromebooks to help bridge the digital divide in schools that lack funding.
- Partnering with EmbraceRace, a national organization dedicated to creating tools, resources, and networks to promote a movement of child and adult racial justice advocates.
- Supporting the mission of Special Olympics Arizona, which provides year-round sports training and athletic competition in a variety of Olympic-type sports, as well as health, arts, and leadership and advocacy programs for children and adults with intellectual disabilities.
- Planting trees through the Arbor Day Foundation on behalf of customers who switch to paperless billing. By the end of 2021, the company will have planted 110,000 trees in its markets and national forests.
- Supporting the mission of Keep America Beautiful in cleaning up and beautifying communities across the U.S.
For more information about Sparklight’s Charitable Giving Fund, visit www.sparklight.com/charitablegiving.