By Hillary Knox | La Plata Electric Association
The La Plata Electric Association (LPEA) Round Up Foundation board approved a total of $46,698 in grant funding to nonprofit organizations at its meetings in April, May and June.
The following groups received funding as part of these three grant cycles: 4 the Children, Animas High School, Durango 9R Athletics and Activities, Durango Cowboy Gathering, Durango High School, Durango PlayFest, Foundation for Archuleta County Education, La Plata Youth Services, Manna Soup Kitchen, Seed Studio, Southwest Civic Winds, The Hive DGO, Thingamajig Theater Company, Wings Early Childhood Center, and the Women’s Resource Center of Durango.
A percentage of Round Up funds is also distributed to community assistance programs each year. Thus far in 2022, the Round Up Foundation has allocated $14,680 to the Community Emergency Assistance Coalition and $4,891 to the Pagosa Outreach Connection to provide families and individuals with emergency assistance funds.
Round Up Foundation grants are made possible, in part, by the generosity of LPEA members who choose to round up their electric bill each month to the next highest dollar. Also, $60,000 in unclaimed LPEA capital credits are provided annually to the Round Up Foundation board to support these grants. LPEA members wishing to round up their bill can sign up on SmartHub or at: lpea.coop/round-foundation. The average LPEA member contribution is just $6 annually. Members can also elect to automatically donate more each month if they would like to contribute additional money to local nonprofits.
Application forms are available at: lpea.coop/grant-programs.