Line Technician Aaron Dasher paid forward $500 to Laurens Electric’s Give 5 program,intended to help those faced with growing electricity bills as a result of economic hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The voluntary program, launched May 1, allows cooperative members to help fellow members as hundreds in our area have lost jobs or seen their work hours reduced.
To participate, co-op members add a $5 – or more – donation to their electric bill for only one or two months.
Laurens Electric will match that amount for every member donating, up to a total match of $100,000.
Aaron said, “Everyone is having a hard time right now, and the fact that some of our members are struggling to pay their power bills hits close to home. This is a way I can help, and since the co-op is matching donations, this doubles the impact.”
Members interested in donating can sign up at LaurensElectric.com/Give5, or contact a representative at 1-800-942-3141 or customercare@laurenselectric.com. Participating members will see the donation on their next power bill.
Non-cooperative members can also donate via cash, check or card by contacting the co-op.
All money raised through Give 5 will be used to help those Laurens Electric Co-op members who need a helping hand.
The funds will go into LEC’s Cooperative Caring program, for which money is raised annually through the co-op’s charity events. This money is distributed through the Laurens Baptist Crisis Center (864-984-2966) and the Center for Community Services in Greenville (864-967-2022).
The Pay It Forward program began in 2015.
Every Laurens Electric Cooperative employee is entered into a random drawing to receive $500 to pay forward in any way they choose. Each month a new name is drawn, and the employee then has one month to apply the funds toward their own act of kindness.
This initiative is budget-neutral; the funds will come from Laurens Electric’s charity events, which employee volunteers make possible.
Employees and the community will enable individual employees to help individuals in the community, and that’s a win-win situation.