EPCOR Community Essentials Council

At EPCOR’s Annual General Meeting yesterday, the EPCOR Community Essentials Council (ECEC) was officially announced:

“The EPCOR Community Essentials Council provides funding to not-for-profit groups who’s initiatives directly align with EPCOR’s water and wires businesses, and our mandate of delivering life essentials to customers and the community,” said Don Lowry, EPCOR President and CEO. “We are pleased that our new Council is able to help strengthen the communities where EPCOR operates.”

As Graham Hicks wrote today, “imitation is the most sincere form of flattery.” One could argue that TELUS has certainly led the way when it comes to community investment here in Edmonton, and during his remarks yesterday Don Lowry gave credit to the TELUS Community Boards for setting the example. I think it’s fantastic that EPCOR has revamped its approach to community investment, and I think the creation of the ECEC is a wonderful thing for Edmonton and all of the other communities EPCOR serves.

I’m very honored and happy to be a part of the inaugural council. It’s an incredible group of people!

From left-to-right: Matthew Herder, Utility Worker, Distribution and Transmission, EPCOR; Elizabeth O’Neill, Executive Director, Big Brothers Big Sisters; Mack Male, Software Engineering Manager, Questionmark Computing & Founder, Paramagnus Developments; Robert Walker, Vice President, Building Division (Northern Alberta), Ledcor Construction Ltd.; Jamie Pytel, Acting Associate General Council & Acting Assistant Corporate Secretary, EPCOR; Jeffrey Lloyd, Vice President, Stantec Consulting Ltd.; Ruth Kelly, Chair, EPCOR Community Essentials Council, President & Publisher, Venture Publishing Inc.; Frank Mannarino, Divisional Vice President, Water Operations, EPCOR; Leigh-Anne Palter, Vice Chair, EPCOR Community Essentials Council, Vice President, Public & Government Affairs, EPCOR; Simon Farbrother, City Manager, City of Edmonton; Patti Lefebvre, Dean, Faculty of Foundational & Intercultural Studies, NorQuest College.

The council supports initiatives that align with EPCOR’s community investment philosophy:

EPCOR’s Community Essentials Council (ECEC) will support initiatives which PROVIDE MORE of the ESSENTIALS required to enhance the quality of life in the communities EPCOR serves.  The most essential elements of strong communities and strong families are:  Food (Water); Shelter (Safety and Energy); and Education. These three elements are the pillars of EPCOR’s new community investment approach.

Here’s a video introducing the ECEC:

It’s important to note that the ECEC is just one of the ways that EPCOR supports worthy causes in our community. The company will continue with sponsorships and other partnerships as well. For example, EPCOR is the Season Sponsor of the Citadel Theatre, and that won’t change as a result of the creation of the ECEC.

We recently had our first meeting and worked through the applications totaling more than $400,000. Our chair, Ruth Kelly, did a great job of facilitating the meeting. It certainly wasn’t easy, but in the end we awarded grants totaling $100,000 to seven worthy projects. It was great to meet Kyle Dube, Executive Director at YOUCAN Edmonton, and a few of the other recipients at yesterday’s AGM! You can see the full list of recipients here.

I knew about many of the organizations that had applied, but was quite pleased to be able to learn about some new ones too. There are so many amazing initiatives underway! If your organization would like to apply for funding from the ECEC, you can learn more and fill out the form here (also check out the FAQ for applicants). You can also seek sponsorship or other long-term support from EPCOR as well.

Thanks to EPCOR and ECEC Chair Ruth Kelly for the opportunity to be a part of this great initiative! You can learn more about the ECEC here.