Phillips Energy and the United Way of the Virginia Peninsula Join Forces, Donating $2,000 to Gloucester Housing Partnership
Phillips Energy and the United Way of the Virginia Peninsula are pleased to announce they joined forces and presented the Gloucester Housing Partnership with $2,000 to help fuel its mission to keep residents of Gloucester warm, safe and dry in their homes through the winter.
Phillips Energy named the Gloucester Housing Partnership the 2017 recipient of its annual Giving Tuesday fundraiser – a nationwide effort that encourages charities, families, businesses and individuals to follow the post-Thanksgiving shopping blitz with efforts to help local communities.
“Our team came together and voted on which charity in our community we would support this year,” said Phillips Energy Vice President Elizabeth McCormick. “They chose the Gloucester Housing Partnership, motivated by their mission to help Gloucester homeowners who are elderly, disabled or low-income with housing repairs they might not otherwise be able to afford. At the end of the day, the Gloucester Housing Partnership helps prevent homelessness and we were all inspired by that.”
Part of the donation came from Phillips Energy donating 10 percent of retail fuel sales at its Gloucester Point gas station on November 28.
“I was so impressed with all the effort all the employees and Phillips Energy did with Giving Tuesday to support the Gloucester Housing Partnership that I thought it was only fitting for the United Way to match what they had done,” said Steven S. Kast, President and CEO of the United Way of the Virginia Peninsula.
United Way of the Virginia Peninsula represents the entire region, including the Middle Peninsula. The Gloucester Housing Partnership is just one of many non-profits on the Middle Peninsula that the United Way of the Virginia Peninsula supports each year, either through designations or allocations.
“We are trying to move as many folks out of poverty – the working poor – as we can,” Kast said. “Those are the asset limited, income constrained, employed individuals. Basically folks who are working two to three jobs and at the end of the month still having to make choices on rent, health care or food. Our goal is to move 10 percent of the population out of that situation by 2023 and the work the Gloucester Housing Partnership does plays a huge role in that.”
In previous years, Phillips Energy’s Giving Tuesday efforts have supported the Bread for Life Community Food Pantry, The Samaritan Group, the Alzheimer’s Association and the Laurel Shelter.
ABOUT PHILLIPS ENERGY:
Founded in 1946, Phillips Energy remains one of the upper Tidewater region’s only providers of heating oil, on- and off-road diesel, gasoline, propane, dyed and clear kerosene, alternative fuels and lubricants. Phillips Energy meets the complete energy needs of homes and businesses in Gloucester, Mathews, York, James and New Kent Counties, as well as the Peninsula and Williamsburg area. Phillips Energy serves the community out of three locations – New Kent, Gloucester Point and Mathews. For more information on Phillips Energy, visit www.phillipsoilandgas.com.
ABOUT THE UNITED WAY OF THE VIRGINIA PENINSULA:
United Way believes the community can achieve more together than any of us could do on our own. That's why its Board of Directors is committed to the mission of uniting people, organizations and resources to improve lives in the Virginia Peninsula. By fostering community partnerships, the United Way of the Virginia Peninsula can champion shared goals and align resources to deliver innovative, holistic solutions to the community's most pressing issues, with a focus on coming together to break the cycle of poverty. To learn more about the United Way of the Virginia Peninsula, visit www.uwvp.org.
ABOUT THE GLOUCESTER HOUSING PARTNERSHIP:
The Gloucester Housing Partnership formed in 1992 as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization focused on making homes warm, safe dry, and accessible for Gloucester County homeowners who are elderly, disabled or of low-income. Home repairs are made at no cost to the homeowners. The Gloucester Housing Partnership receives referrals from the Gloucester County Department of Social Services, Healthy Families, Bay Aging, community organizations and citizens concerned about their neighbors. The Gloucester Housing Partnership is governed by a volunteer Board of Directors who meet quarterly and an Executive Projects Committee who meet monthly to evaluate and assess the work of the organization. To learn more about GHP visit www.ghp4u.com.
