Combined efforts from Broad River Electric Cooperative employees and its members have provided 3,000 book bags to elementary students across the upstate of South Carolina.
“There is a need for these backpacks and supplies throughout our area,” explained Barbara Whitney, chair of the Broad River Electric Charities Board and a retired school administrator in Spartanburg County. “We wanted to help our children begin their school year equipped, not just with supplies, but with the knowledge that their community supports them.”
The funds used to purchase the packs came from Operation Round Up® program, a Broad River Electric program in which the cooperative’s members round up their monthly bills to the nearest dollar. The extra change accumulates into a benevolent fund that is distributed to local charities and causes. This is the fifth consecutive summer that the fund has provided supplies and necessities to local students.
Broad River Electric employees and Broad River Electric Charities Board members assembled at Broad River Electric Auditorium in Gaffney on August 8 to stuff the 3,000 backpacks. Since then, Broad River Electric representatives have been hand delivering the bags to the dozens of schools and community centers in the area.