Goodwill and giving often take center stage during the end-of-year holiday season as people come together to support those who are most in need. But for electric cooperatives, the spirit of giving is not limited to this time of year.
Instead, community is a focus year-round because co-ops like Great River Energy are rooted in the values of service, connection and strengthening communities. They are dedicated to powering more than just homes and businesses. Co-ops also power opportunity, growth and possibility.
Below are examples of how Great River Energy and its employees worked together to power its communities across Minnesota in 2024.
Life-saving workplace blood drives return
Blood centers throughout the country are experiencing what has been described as emergency blood supply shortage, a problem compounded in part by a slow return to workplace blood drives due to the pandemic.
Great River Energy did its part to help by hosting an on-site blood drive at its Maple Grove headquarters in partnership with the Memorial Blood Centers, a nonprofit that supplies blood to more than 40 hospitals in Minnesota and western Wisconsin, via its bloodmobile. All available donation slots were filled, including five first-time donors. A total of 28 units were donated with the potential to save 84 lives.
Employees raise funds for communities
Great River Energy holds an annual Community Giving Campaign in October as an opportunity for employees to contribute toward nonprofit organizations of their choice through payroll deductions or bidding on auction items.
This year’s campaign proved successful as employees demonstrated their generosity and compassion for their local communities through raising just shy of $75,000 with a company match. These funds were directed toward 10 Minnesota United Way chapters, three North Dakota United Way chapters and Great River Energy’s Memorial Scholarship Fund.
Corporate giving initiative supports nonprofits
One of Great River Energy’s year-round giving efforts is led by the cooperative’s contributions team, which considers requests on a quarterly basis from nonprofit organizations located in areas where the cooperative has member-owner cooperatives and employees. Funds are provided to organizations that do the greatest amount of good for the greatest number of consumer-members as well as communities where the cooperative owns facilities.
This year, more than $125,000 was invested by Great River Energy into local community organizations focused on providing critical social services, youth-based developmental programming and initiatives that promote environmental sustainability.
CoBank, a national cooperative bank serving various industries across rural America, shares Great River Energy’s commitment to giving back to its communities through charitable donations. The bank partners with its customer-owners to match their contributions through a Sharing Success fund. Since 2012, CoBank has made $86 million in combined donations in the communities its partners and members call home.
Sharing Success matched $9,000 in donations made by Great River Energy’s contributions team this year.
Volunteer effort supports affordable homeownership
About 60 Great River Energy employees, primarily from the transmission division, put on gloves and hard hats as they supported the Twin Cities Habitat for Humanity organization by helping to build a new quadplex townhome in Prior Lake.
Tasks that employees performed included installing drywall, blowing insulation into attic spaces and removing trees from the property.
Transmission employees have volunteered with Habitat for Humanity since 2010, with a break during the COVID-19 pandemic. Great River Energy encourages employees to take time to give back to the community and offers eligible employees 16 paid volunteer hours per year.
Groups assemble care packages, hold clothing drive
Great River Energy believes its continued success depends on the diverse skills, experiences and backgrounds that employees bring to the company. To help foster diversity and inclusion, the cooperative supports employee resource groups (ERGs).
Two ERGs held events this year to benefit the focus of each of their groups. The Veterans ERG held a packing event in coordination with Maple Grove Beyond the Yellow Ribbon to assemble 200 care packages to be delivered to deployed troops around the holidays.
The Women’s ERG collected women’s professional clothing like suits, dresses, shoes and jewelry to help low-income job seekers look the part for interviews and other employment opportunities. Drop-off locations were located at both Great River Energy’s Elk River and Maple Grove locations.
Turkeys and toys donated to families for the holidays
One of the cooperative’s oldest traditions continued as all employees were offered a holiday turkey. Employees could also donate their birds to one of several local food banks so that other families could complete their holiday meals. More than 3,000 pounds of turkey were distributed among communities where Great River Energy has employees and facilities, including Elk River, Big Lake and Zimmerman.
The cooperative again supported the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve Toys for Tots program this year with a drive at two of its Minnesota facilities. Employees were encouraged to bring new, unwrapped toys — such as action figures, dolls, baby toys and puzzles — for children in need.
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