Celebrate the Public Power Day of Giving from Home

Each year, prior to the American Public Power Association National Conference, attendees from public power utilities across the U.S. gather to volunteer with local service organizations to make a positive impact in the conference host city. This year, APPA is encouraging all members to join them on June 7 by doing a Day of Giving in your communities.

If you hold an event, let APPA know by sharing photos of your activities on social media using the hashtags #PublicPower and #DayofGiving on all your posts. You can also send images to Heartland to post on our social media accounts.

You can find ready-to-use templates for graphics, social graphics, Facebook profile photo frames and snapchat filters here. If you choose to do a Day of Giving at any other time, you can still use these resources.

Volunteering is a great way to foster a healthy team spirit, build morale, and show public power’s commitment to giving back to communities. Many employees are looking for a sense of purpose through their work, and value community involvement. There are many different activities you could organize in your community. Here are some ideas:

Find a local project
Many shelters, food pantries, boys and girls clubs, and other organizations will do most of the planning for volunteer activities – you simply have to schedule a day and show up. To get started, talk to your team members about the causes they care about – then make a plan.

Sponsor an event
Sponsoring an existing community event allows you to give back while creating brand awareness. You can sponsor an event by donating funds, but if your budget won’t allow for a financial contribution, your team can still donate time and skills.

Build something
If your team is down for getting its hands dirty, try taking part in a construction project. Habitat for Humanity, for example, gives organizations the opportunity to participate in all kinds of projects, from one-day builds to longer multi-day builds.

Clean something
Spending a day cleaning up a local green space, beach, park, or other public area will win you brownie points with the neighborhood while giving your employees a memorable experience outside the office. Several organizations can help you organize a clean-up project (the World Wildlife Fund, for example) but you can also connect with your local parks and recreation department or community leaders.