EnergySource Helping All Coloradans Afford Home Energy

Donor Newsletter | Fall/Winter 2008 www.EnergyOutreach.org

EOC Gearing Up for 2008-09

Energy Outreach Colorado plans to distribute $9.35 million statewide through its 2008-09 programs to help Colorado households afford home energy. 

This funding, which Energy Outreach raises through foundation, corporate, government and individual donations, includes:

- $7.65 million contributed to a statewide network of 100 assistance agencies that operate year round
for energy assistance, and Colorado’s Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP) which operates
November through April

- $1 million contributed to affordable housing organizations
in Colorado to increase the energy efficiency of their homes

- $550,000 to provide weatherization services to Colorado non-profit
facilities such as shelters and residential treatment centers to lower
their energy costs

- $150,000 to fund education and outreach programs that promote
energy efficiency

With Colorado energy costs predicted to increase by at least 10 percent this winter, Energy Outreach Colorado is working to help limited income households through emergency situations with energy assistance, and manage their energy costs through more efficient housing and energy education. 

“We’re very committed to helping lower-income Coloradans stay warm, secure and healthy in their homes, and also participate in the state’s efforts to promote energy efficiency,” said Skip Arnold, executive director of Energy Outreach Colorado.

For information about how to make a donation or get assistance, go to our website at www.EnergyOutreach.org or call toll-free 1-866 HEAT-HELP (1-866-432-8435).
 

Energy Outreach Milestones

- EOC and Colorado LEAP provided energy assistance to about 113,000 households in 2007-08. EOC increased the number of families it helped by 67 percent.

-  Energy Outreach distributed $8.56 million in energy assistance, up 86 percent from 2006-07. The average payment per household increased from $372 to $416.

- EOC provided $800,000 in grants to 18 organizations that installed energy efficient upgrades into more than 1,000
affordable housing units.

- Since 2007, EOC agencies have distributed free Energy Saving Kits to 3,500 low-income households.

- EOC provided $900,000 in energy efficiency upgrades and audits to 25 non-profit facilities in metro Denver and Greeley.

- EOC’s Energy Hog Traveling Road Show reached 11,616 students in 48 schools last year. Since 2003, the program has been presented to 36,025 children in 821 classrooms.

- Since its inception in 1989, EOC has distributed more than $100 million through its programs to support energy affordability.

Energy Outreach Colorado Outlook

Coloradans have had to adapt to increasing energy prices since 2001, and this year will be no exception. Heating bills are expected to be about 5 percent higher than last winter, putting additional pressure on families and seniors who are already struggling with higher food, housing and transportation costs.

While many of us are fortunate enough to be able to keep up with our rising energy bills without having to sacrifice other basic needs, some 370,000 income-limited households across the state don’t have that assurance. Low-wage earners, seniors on fixed incomes and individuals with special needs may have to do without medical care or adequate food to keep the lights and heat on.

Energy Outreach Colorado was established in 1989 to address this program. As a private, non-profit organization, we raise funds for energy assistance and energy efficiency measures for affordable housing. We also supplement the Colorado Low-Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP), which receives limited funding from a federal grant. Unfortunately, the money raised through EOC and LEAP is covering less and less of a low-income household’s need for energy assistance as the number of people applying increase and LEAP funding decreases.

For the 2008-09 season, we anticipate that energy assistance recipients will have to pay a larger percentage of their total utility bill – up from 66% last year to 69% this year. In comparison, these families were responsible for a more  manageable 49 % of their bill in 2005. That’s a major hit, considering low-income families may pay as much as half of their discretionary income on home energy.

Thank you to our many generous donors for supporting the critical need for energy assistance funding in our state. You make such a positive difference in the lives of Colorado’s most vulnerable residents.

Skip Arnold
Executive Director

Energy Outreach Colorado Board of Directors

Gayle Berry
Howard Boigon
Dian Callaghan
Adam Goldman
John A. Harpole
Joel Johnson
Jim Lightner
Patricia Nelson Limerick
Michael J. McFadden
Tom O’Donnell
Mark Sexton
Mark Sunderhuse
Jack Swift
Troy L. Whitmore

Energy Outreach Colorado Staff

Skip Arnold, Executive Director
Alan Bieber, Director Web and Database Management
Jennifer Gremmert,,Deputy Director
Heather Gullen, Administrative & Program Assistant
Peggy Hofstra, Communications Director
Lisa McDonald, Development Director
Jennie Miller, Associate Deputy Director
Pamela Packer, Director, Long-Term Energy Solutions
Rose Reed, Director of Administrative Services


EOC Successfully Lobbies for State Funding

Energy Outreach Colorado played a key role in passing legislation to extend state funding of energy assistance for two years.

A bill signed by Gov. Ritter last May provides $13 million per year from severance tax revenues through June 2012.Of the authorized funding, $3.25 million will go to Energy Outreach, $3.25 million to the Colorado Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LEAP) and $6.5 million to the Governor s Energy Office for low income home energy efficiency.

EOC Funds Affordable Housing Improvements

During 2007-08, Energy Outreach Colorado provided $800,000 in grants to 18 affordable housing organizations to install energy efficient upgrades into more than 1,000 housing units.  Julie Crawmer of Neighbor to Neighbor in Ft. Collins and Pam Packer, EOC’s director of energy solutions, examine where insulation will be added to an apartment building for limited income residents. In 2008-09, EOC plans to provide $1 million in grants for energy efficiency projects.
 

EOC Recipients Emily & Theresa

In 1955, Emily V., her husband and three young children left Louisiana for greener pastures in Denver and purchased a new home for $5,000. They got a discount because it wasn’t quite finished and came without electricity and heat. They made do with a coal-burning stove until they installed a furnace in 1959.

Nearly 50 years later, that furnace was replaced. Emily – now a great-grandmother living alone in the same house – received a home makeover from non-profit Rebuilding Together through a grant from Energy Outreach Colorado and a sponsorship from First Bank. Included were an energy efficient furnace and refrigerator, lighting fixtures, weatherization measures, outdoor security lighting, new doors and indoor and outdoor paint.

“All those years I was ashamed to invite people over because our house was so bad,” she said. “This has really changed my life. Everybody’s done so much to help.”

Theresa J. is used to hard work, and hard luck. Since moving with her family from Los Angeles to Colorado after the riots following the Rodney King beating, she’s weathered job layoffs, medical problems, family difficulties and financial stress. Somehow, she continues to look on the right side.

The 50-year-old grandmother felt like she hit the lottery when she received Energy Outreach Colorado assistance and a job offer in the same week. She’d been laid off a few weeks earlier after being hospitalized with complications from asthma and dehydration, and was facing having her home energy disconnected. The assistance helped keep the lights on in her modest Aurora home until she started her new food services position with Denver Public Schools in August.

“That was the best day ever,” she recalled. “I had hoped I’d keep up with my bills through the summer, but I was shocked by the increase in my Xcel bill. It was like a winter bill, and it wasn’t because of increased usage.”

Denver Agency Champions Homeless Prevention

Denver Urban Ministries (DenUM), located in the heart of Denver, is an oasis of hope and resources for the low income population. It offers a food bank and other food distribution services, job services, legal counseling, health screenings and eviction prevention assistance. As part of its effort to prevent homelessness, it works through Energy Outreach Colorado to distribute energy assistance.

DenUm also handles emergency referrals from EOC. Program director William Lewis works with families, seniors and individuals in crisis situations to provide counseling beyond helping pay a portion of their utility bill.

"Often people in an emergency situation are paralyzed and don t know what to do, he said. Besides provide energy assistance, we look deeper into what s going on in the household and evaluate possible interventions." - William Lewis, Denver Urban Ministries program director.

Family Savors Home Ownership Through EOC Sponsorship

The Yanez-Coronado family The four children in the Yanez-Coronado family finally know what it’s like to have their own bedroom and a safe yard.

After months of hard work, the kids and their parents recently moved out of a cramped two-bedroom apartment into the Denver Habitat for Humanity home they helped build. Their dream was made possible through the sponsorship of Energy
Outreach Colorado, the Daniels Fund and its employees and Coldwell Banker.

Eladio Coronado, who has worked nearly 10 years at a local brick company, and his wife, Martha Yanez, a full-time mom, struggled for years to find affordable housing in Denver.

“Thank you for the opportunity you’re giving us,” they said. We appreciate people taking the time to come out and help us.”

In addition to sponsoring the Yanez-Coronado home, Energy Outreach Colorado provides funding to increase the energy
efficiency of every Habitat for Humanity home built in the state.

Alan Bieber Joins EOC Staff

Energy outreach Colorado is proud to introduce Alan Bieber, our new web and database director.  Alan replaces bethant Therrien, who is leaving to become a first-time mother.  Bethany was very successful in integrating innovative technology during her six years at EOC and we wish her the best of luck.

Before joining Energy Outreach Colorado, Alan was most recently development database administrator at Rocky Mountain PBS.  There he maintained and administered databases for fundraising, the call center and volunteers.  He also held technical support and design positions with Microsoft Corp., MAI Digital Security, Baan, and Brookhaven National Laboratory, and worked as an independent consultant.

Schooled as an archaeologist, he holds doctorate and master's degrees from the University of Connecticut and a bachelor's degree from Yale University.  While growing up in Denver he attended Denver Country Day School.  He is also a long-time ham radio operator, musician, and father of four adult children.

Youth Explore Conservation Through Energy Contest

Hundreds of Colorado sixth-graders are learning about reducing home energy use by participating in a program sponsored by Energy Outreach Colorado.

The Home Energy Investigation Contest invites students to evaluate their family’s energy consumption, propose efficiency measures and present their findings to judges. Colorado Energy Science Center launched the program in 2001. The 2008 contest drew 445 participants and 500 peers, parents and teachers from six schools.

Laura Laycock, science teacher at Challenger Middle School in Colorado Springs, was a program organizer and helped students experiment with light bulbs, learn about types of insulation and evaluate results from home energy audits. During class and after school, she helped 160 students in 30 groups develop projects and present to a panel of eight judges. The three top-ranked groups from her school proceeded to a statewide contest and recognition event in Denver.

“The more in-depth the analysis got, the more they seemed to enjoy it,” Laycock said of her students. “They realized that, as a 12-year-old, they can actually make a difference in how their family spends money.”

“I learned how to save energy in my home by not using as much water,” said one Challenger Middle School student. Another said, “We now use more compact fluorescent lightbulbs instead of incandescent.”

Other schools participating in the contest were Simla Middle and High school; and West Middle School, Orchard Mesa Middle School, Mount Gartfield Middle School, and Central High School in the Grand Junction area.  

Energy Assistance Tops 2-1-1 Help List

Utility assistance is one of the top requests of callers to Mile High United Way s 2 1 1 telephone help line, according to the agency.  In fact, utility assistance topped the list in July 2008, with 3,110 referrals made out of a total 12,641 referrals.

The next highest request was rental assistance, followed by shelters or transitional housing, food and financial assistance.

"People across the metro area need more help than ever paying their gas and electricity bills, said Alicia Jiron, senior director of 2 1 1 for Mile High United Way. Especially this year. Our call center has seen a 25 percent jump in the number of requests for this assistance. It continues to be one of the top five community referrals we give."

 

Give a Holiday Gift that Warms the Home

Looking for a unique and meaningful holiday gift? Consider donating to Energy Outreach Colorado in honor of friends, family members, co-workers, service providers, or anyone else you’d like to recognize.

For each Holiday Gift donation of $10 or higher, Energy Outreach Colorado will send you a specially-designed card that you can give to the recipient. It will convey your gift and the role it plays in helping limited income Coloradans remain warm, safe and healthy in their homes.

To make a holiday gift donation to Energy Outreach Colorado, please go to www.EnergyOutreach.org and select the “Holiday Gift Program” button on the home page. Or, to order over the phone, call 303-226-5056. If you’d like to develop a customized gift program for a larger group, such as employees or clients, please call 303-226-5056.

Thank you for helping all Coloradans afford home energy!


Golf Benefit Raises $175,000 for Energy Assistance

An enthusiastic gathering of Energy Outreach Colorado supporters raised $175,000 for energy assistance at the Fourth
Annual National Fuel Marketing golf tournament on Sept. 11. More than 100 golfers, most from the natural gas and utility
industry, hit the links at Inverness Golf Club to benefit EOC’s energy assistance program, which provides funding to more than 100 emergency assistance organizations across the state.

Title sponsor National Fuel Marketing (NFM) is very committed to raising funds for energy assistance. “As a leader in the
energy industry, National Fuel Marketing is very aware of what it costs to produce energy and how current high costs impact our Colorado low-income community,” said Dan Joss, NFM president. “We are committed to supporting Energy Outreach Colorado’s efforts to help Coloradans who struggle to pay their energy bills.”

Thank you to each of our generous event sponsors!

Title Sponsor: National Fuel Marketing

Premier Sponsor: St. Mary Land & Exploration Company

Coal Sponsor: Noble Energy

Solar Sponsor: American National Bank

Wind Sponsors: USBank, Bentek Energy, Hein & Associates, RTS Corp., Enserco

Team Sponsors: SourceGas, Echelon Capital Group, Xcel Energy, JC Thompson, MHA, Orion Energy, Pioneer Natural Resources, Guaranty Bank, Colorado Mining Association



Energy Outreach Colorado Agency Partners by Region

Denver-Metro and Boulder
Access Housing
ACS Lift, Adventist Community Service
Adams County Housing Authority
Almost Home
Association for Senior Citizens
Aurora InterChurch Task Force
Boulder County AIDS Project
Boulder Housing Authority
Boulder Housing Coalition
Broadway Assistance Center
Catholic Charities, Denver
City of Arvada Housing & Neighborhood Revitalization
City of Denver
Colorado AIDS Project
Community Ministry
Cross Community Coalition
Delores Project
Denver Indian Health and Family Services
Denver Rescue Mission
Denver Urban Ministries
Douglas/Elbert County Task Force
Emergency Family Assistance Assoc.
EMPOWERMENT
Family Tree
First Mennonite Church
Fish of Broomfield
Groundwork Denver
Habitat for Humanity – Metro Denver
Helping Hearts and Hands
House of Neighborly Service
Inter-Church ARMS
Inter-Faith Community Services
Jeffco Action Center
Jefferson center for Mental Health
Jewish Family Services
Karis Community
LifeBridge Christian Church
Longmont Housing Authority
Longs Peak Energy Conservation
Lowry Family Center
Lutheran Family Services
Mercy Housing
Metro CareRing
Mile High Ministries
OUR Center
Parker Task Force
Rebuilding Together – Metro Denver
St. Francis Center
St. Vincent De Paul Society
Salvation Army, Denver
Sara Brown Memorial Fund
Savio House
Seniors Support Services
Seniors’ Resource Center
Seniors! Inc.
Sister Carmen Community Center
Sobriety House
The Park People
Third Way Center
Urban Peak
Warren Village
Women’s Bean Project
Youth Biz

Mountain
Archdiocesan Housing
Catholic Charities, Glenwood Springs
Clear Creek County Dept. of Human Services
Family & Intercultural Resource Center
First Presbyterian Church of Salida
Help the Needy
Lake County Health and Human Services
Loaves and Fishes Ministry of Fremont County
Mercy Housing - Breckenridge
Mountain Family Center
Mountain Resource Center
Park County Crisis Shelter
Salvation Army, Teller County
Salvation Army, Vail Valley

Northeast
Caring Ministries of Morgan County
Catholic Charities, Fort Collins
Catholic Charities, Weld County
Colorado East Community Action Agency
Cooperating Ministry of Logan County
Crossroads Ministry of Estes Park
Faith Community Service Fund
Fort Collins Housing Authority
Greeley Transitional Housing
Loveland Housing Development Corp.
Morgan County Family Center
Northern Colorado AIDS Project
Phillips County Department of Human Services
Rural Communities Resource Center
Sedgwick County Economic Development

Northwest
Community Budget Center
Independent Life Center
Jackson County Department of
Human Services
Lift-Up of Routt County
WARM

Central, Southeast
Advocates Against Domestic Assault
Catholic Charities, Pueblo
City of Fountain Lighten the Load
Colorado Springs Utilities
Crowley County
Ecumenical Social Ministries
La Junta Associated Charities
La Junta Housing Authority
Las Animas Helping Hands
Northern Churches Care
Pikes Peak Community Action Agency
Prowers County Department of Human Svcs
Salvation Army, Colorado Springs
Salvation Army, Baca County
South Central Council of Governments
Southeastern Colorado Compassion Center
Southern Colorado AIDS Project
Tri County Family Care Center
Tri-County Housing
Tri-Lakes Cares
San Luis Valley, Southwest, Western Slope
Colorado Housing, Inc.
Community Emergency Assistance Coalition
Comm. United Methodist Church, Pagosa Springs
Delta United Methodist Church
Grand Valley Catholic Outreach
Gunnison/Hinsdale County Dept. of Human Services
Housing Resources of Western Colorado
Housing Solutions for the Southwest
La Puente Home
MADA
Pinon Project
Telluride Foundation
United Methodist Church of Dove Creek
Western Colorado AIDS Project

Statewide
Brain Injury Association of Colo.
Colorado Low-income Energy Assistance Program
Habitat for Humanity Colorado
Lupus Foundation of Colorado
National MS Society, Colorado Chapter
Rocky Mountain Center Centers Foundation
Military Families
The Home Front Cares
 

Keep Your Home Safe and Warm

As autumn temperatures drop and evenings lengthen, keep in mind these tips for staying safe and warm in your home:

- Check that heating vents are unblocked and working properly and the furnace is cleaned and maintained. Change furnace filters once every two months and do not store flammable liquids in the same room.

- Install a carbon monoxide alarm in bedrooms to detect dangerous build-ups of unvented carbon monoxide from fueled heaters or other sources.

- If using a portable electric space heater, make sure it carries the mark of an independent testing laboratory (US, CSA or ETL) and has an automatic shut-off feature that activates if it is tipped over. Use only when an adult is present and keep it at least three feet away from anything that can burn.

- Under no circumstance should you use an oven or barbecue grill as an indoor heating source.

- Watch candles carefully and use sturdy, safe candleholders that can collect dripping wax. Keep candles away from children and anything that can ignite. Don’t place lit candles in windows, where blinds or curtains can close over or come in contact with them. Blow them out when you leave the room or go to sleep.

- Make sure power and extension cords are certified by an independent testing laboratory and aren’t frayed, cracked or cut. Follow the rating for indoor or outdoor use.

- If you use a wood-burning fireplace, have the chimney inspected and cleaned annually and use a sturdy fireplace screen. Do not burn trash, including gift wrap, because it can burn too quickly and intensely.

- Keep working flashlights on hand and avoid using a candle for emergency lighting.