Sparklight®, a member of the Cable One family of brands, recently awarded a $3,000 grant to the Norfolk Arts Center through the company’s Charitable Giving Fund. Through this program, the company awarded more than $100,000 in grants during the winter of 2021 to 32 nonprofit organizations across its 24-state footprint.
Norfolk Arts Center, which brings the best of the arts to northeast Nebraska through gallery exhibits, theater, music, classes, and social events, received a grant from Sparklight to help continue its mission on outreach and education, and serving the community in the most dynamic and advantageous manner possible.
“At the Norfolk Arts Center, we envision a community in which everyone has access to the knowledge, inspiration, comfort, enrichment, and cultural complexity of the arts,” said Sherry Ruden, Norfolk Arts Center Executive Director. “As the regional collaboration point and educational hub for arts in northeast Nebraska, we are the leading force in nurturing art in all its forms for the people, organizations, and businesses of this area, both as a presenter of the arts and as an inspiration for the arts to flourish in our community. The funds from Sparklight allow us to continue to adapt and integrate our programs into the fabric of our community and use the arts as a tool to evoke dialog and break down barriers.”
The Charitable Giving Fund annually awards more than $200,000 in grants to local 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations served by Sparklight and the other Cable One family of brands (Fidelity Communications, ValuNet Fiber, and Hargray), and 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 spring 2022 grants will open between April 1 -30, 2022.
“Through our philanthropic initiatives and support of our local nonprofit organizations, we are helping to build strong and vibrant communities, improve quality of life, and make a positive difference in the cities and towns 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 2,000 Chromebooks to help bridge the digital divide in schools that lack funding.
- Supporting national organizations dedicated to advancing racial equality, justice, education and diversity, including the Equal Justice Initiative, the Emma Bowen Foundation and the National Diversity Council.
- 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. To date, the company has planted 120,000 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.