WFEC commitment benefits community
Like all Touchstone Energy® cooperatives, West Florida Electric maintains a strong commitment to community – one of four core values, along with integrity, accountability and innovation, that the Touchstone Energy® brand represents. After all, not only is WFEC owned by the residents of the rural areas it serves; WFEC also is operated by employees who themselves are members of the communities in its service territory. Through its support of various local efforts and organizations, both in conjunction with other Touchstone Energy cooperatives and individually, WFEC maintains a six-decade tradition of working to improve the quality of life in the rural communities it serves in Calhoun, Holmes, Jackson and Washington Counties, today and in the years to come.
For today’s needs
Among the organizations that benefit from WFEC’s ongoing support is the American Cancer Society. WFEC has served as regional Premier sponsor of the local ACS Relay for Life events since 2000. Earlier this year, WFEC and its neighboring Touchstone Energy® co-ops in the Panhandle presented a $52,500 check toward the local ACS fundraisers, which generate money for cancer research, patient assistance and education. In addition, WFEC’s employees form teams to participate in area Relays each year.
Jointly with Gulf Coast Electric, a Touchstone Energy® cooperative headquartered in Wewahitchka, Fla., WFEC recently presented a $2,500 check to the Children’s Home Society of Florida, one of the state’s oldest and largest child welfare agencies. The donation will fund Society programs assisting in adoption, child protection, early intervention, family connections , targeted case management and teen services. WFEC also supports the American Red Cross, recently participating in the"Heroes of the American Red Cross" in Jackson County to raise funds toward an overall goal of $25,000.
For tomorrow’s leaders
WFEC and its employees enthusiastically contribute to and participate in activities and programs that benefit local youth because, for a community to prosper, its members must nurture their future leaders. For example, Touchstone Energy cooperatives, including WFEC, recently have become local sponsors of the National Child Identification Program, designed to help law enforcement agencies locate missing children. Through the program, WFEC will soon begin distributing kits fingerprinting kits that include all the materials needed for recording a child’s fingerprints, physical description and other distinguishing characteristics.
Through a partnership with Discovery Channel School, Touchstone Energy® cooperatives are providing a new educational initiative, called Get Charged!, to teach middle school students about the electricity they use in their everyday lives. WFEC will furnish local schools with materials for the curriculum, based on Discovery’s award-winning programming. Also for middle school classrooms, WFEC offers Teen Power, an innovative program that uses music, cartoons and interactive Web pages to teach energy awareness through real-life exercises. Developed by the Electric Power Research Institute, Teen Power is "The Energy Education Neighborhood Program Offering Wise Energy-use for Real-life."
For area high school juniors, the Co-op’s annual Youth Tour competition provides a unique educational experience. Each year, eleventh-graders whose homes are served by WFEC are eligible to compete for a week-long, expenses-paid trip to Washington, D. C., for NRECA’s National Youth Tour. WFEC also treats all its Youth Tour competitors to a two-day tour of the state capitol in Tallahassee. The Youth Tour’s program’s overall purpose is to provide public recognition to outstanding young people and to acquaint high school students with governmental activities on a local, state and federal level.
WFEC also contributes to quality education in its communities through its role as a Partner for Excellence in Education. As a Partner, WFEC donates money for computer equipment, sponsors educational field trips and conducts tours of Co-op facilities. In addition, WFEC’s employees participate in career fairs, mentor students participating in "shadow" programs and conduct classroom lessons on topics such as electrical safety, energy conservation, basic electricity and how electricity is produced and distributed. WFEC lends support , as well, by sponsoring yearbooks and athletic programs and events such as math tournaments and Veterans’ Day programs, as well as Project Graduation, a drug- and alcohol-free, all-night party for graduating high school seniors.
For future progress
Economic development efforts are vital for ensuring a community’s continued prosperity. That’s why WFEC plays a leading role in economic development organizations such as Florida’s Great Northwest, a regional entity composed by business, academic and economic development leaders working together to strengthen the economy throughout 16 northwest Florida counties. WFEC also assists local economic development projects by re-lending money from zero-percent or low-interest loans available to electric co-ops through the U. S. Department of Agriculture. WFEC maintains a revolving loan fund, as well, to fund start-up or expansion of qualified businesses in the area.
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