Laurens Electric Cooperative awarded two Community Impact Initiative grants at the Fountain Chamber of Commerce’s 70th Annual Banquet in April.
One grant was awarded to Generations Group Homes, LLC. Founded in 1991, the non-profit group home provides care for boys caught in the cycle of sexual abuse.
The organization will use the grant to improve the basketball court and add another goal at one end of the court so the boys can safely engage in recreation.
According to generationsgroup.com, “Learning to play and be a child is a big part of the Group Homes program as many of our boys have not had an appropriate childhood. Through structured recreation, special events, holiday celebrations, and Boy Scout Troop #821, our boys can finally experience the joys of childhood.”
A second grant was awarded to Fountain Inn Museum, another nonprofit organization which is focused on preserving the history, heritage, and culture of small-town Upcountry South Carolina.
The museum plans to create banners featuring Fountain Inn historical figures to display during Black History Month and on Juneteenth. The goal is to honor Fountain Inn’s black history legacy and highlight the influential historical figures who have made a lasting impact on the community.
In addition to hosting family and school tours, the museum also hosts historical lectures, a Genealogy Corner, and offers a collection of digitized Fountain Inn Tribune newspapers dating as far back as 1911.
Visitors to the museum can also explore exhibits featuring Fountain Inn notables such as Robert Quillen, ‘Peg Leg’ Bates, Caroline Coleman, and Travelle Wharton.
Laurens Electric’s Community Impact Initiative provides grants up to $2000 intended to enrich the quality of life of citizens in the communities the cooperative serves. Funding for the initiative comes from Laurens Electric’s annual charity events.
Community members apply through their local Chambers of Commerce in Laurens, Mauldin, Simpsonville and Fountain Inn. Find out more about the program at laurenselectric.com/grant.
