Atlanta Gas Light Donates $315,000 to Help Low-Income Elderly Stay Warm This WinterEmployee Volunteers Make Blankets for Homeless November 9, 2005
ATLANTA, Nov 09, 2005 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Atlanta Gas Light (AGL), a subsidiary of Atlanta-based AGL Resources (NYSE: ATG), today distributed energy assistance grants totaling $315,000 to four Georgia social service organizations. The AGL corporate funds are intended to help low-income elderly Georgians stay warm this winter by providing heating bill assistance as well as new furnaces and/or natural gas water heaters.
"As we approach our 150th year of delivering natural gas to Georgia consumers, AGL has a proud tradition of giving back to the communities we serve," said Harriette Watkins, president, AGL Resources Private Foundation. "Doing all we can to help our friends and neighbors stay warm during the winter months is part of our core values and mission."
Watkins and David Burgess, commissioner, Georgia Public Service Commission, presented the AGL energy assistance grants to representatives from the following organizations just prior to the start of the H.E.A.T., Inc. (Heating Energy Assistance Team) annual board meeting held in the auditorium of AGL Resources headquarters, Ten Peachtree Place:
-- H.E.A.T., Inc. - $150,000 for energy assistance;
-- Resource Service Ministries - $75,000 for replacing or refurbishing furnaces;
-- Sullivan Center - $50,000 for energy assistance; and
-- United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta - $40,000 for the agency's 211 referral program
The recipients were also presented with a sample of the colorful fleece blankets being made by AGL Resources employee volunteers for the homeless.
"I commend AGL for stepping forward and meeting the challenge to help low-income seniors stay warm this winter," said Georgia Public Service Commission member David Burgess. "In times when home heating costs are sky rocketing, this assistance will provide welcome relief.
"I continue to encourage other participants in this industry to do likewise," added Burgess.
"Sharing the knowledge that as a result of higher than ever energy prices there will be many more Georgians in need this winter, we're grateful to accept the largest single energy assistance grant from AGL in the history of H.E.A.T.," said Janet Joseph, executive director of H.E.A.T, which was formed in 1983 to raise money for low-income energy assistance.
Led by Joseph, a former AGL employee, H.E.A.T. has distributed more than $14.5 million and assisted nearly 73,000 Georgia households.
AGL Resources Employee Volunteers Make Blankets for Homeless
While the energy assistance funds were being distributed, AGL Resources employee volunteers (giving up their lunch time) were busy making colorful fleece blankets for the homeless.
What started in 2003 by Barbara Thomas, AGL Resources executive assistant, as a way to help a few homeless men and women stay warm in Atlanta, has blossomed into a company-wide program where some 2,200 blankets will be made over the next several weeks. The blankets - made by AGL Resources employee volunteers in 27 utility service areas from New Jersey to Florida -- will be donated to shelters helping the homeless all along the East Coast. In December, AGL will present several hundred blankets to the Atlanta Union Mission, My Sister's House, and the Gateway Center to distribute to the homeless in Atlanta.
About AGL Resources AGL Resources (NYSE: ATG), an Atlanta-based energy services holding company, serves 2.3 million customers in six states through its utility subsidiaries - Atlanta Gas Light, Elizabethtown Gas in New Jersey, Virginia Natural Gas, Florida City Gas, Chattanooga Gas, and Elkton Gas in Maryland. A Fortune 1000 company that ranks number 46 in the Fortune gas and electric utilities sector, AGL Resources reported 2004 revenue of $1.8 billion and net income of $153 million. The company also owns Houston-based Sequent Energy Management, an asset manager serving natural gas wholesale customers throughout the East and Midwest. As a 70 percent owner in the SouthStar partnership, AGL Resources markets natural gas to consumers in Georgia under the Georgia Natural Gas brand. AGL Networks, the company's telecommunications subsidiary, owns and operates fiber optic networks in Atlanta and Phoenix. The company also owns and operates Jefferson Island Storage & Hub, a high-deliverability natural gas storage facility near the Henry Hub in Louisiana. For more information, visit www.aglresources.com.
About Atlanta Gas Light Atlanta Gas Light, a wholly owned subsidiary of AGL Resources (NYSE: ATG), provides delivery service to more than 1.6 million customers in Georgia. In operation since 1856, the company is one of the oldest corporations in the state. For more information, visit www.atlantagaslight.com.
About the Georgia Public Service Commission The Georgia Public Service Commission is a five-member constitutional body which is charged with the regulation of natural gas and electric utilities, telecommunications services, pipeline safety and transportation services in the state of Georgia. For more information about the Georgia Public Service Commission, go to www.psc.state.ga.us.
About H.E.A.T. The Heating Energy Assistance Team (H.E.A.T.) was formed in 1983 to raise money for low-income energy assistance. When Georgia's natural gas industry was deregulated, H.E.A.T. became a 501(c) (3) nonprofit organization. Since 1983 the organization has distributed more than $13.5 million and assisted nearly 70,000 Georgia households. For more information about the Heating Energy Assistance Team or to donate online, go to www.heatga.org.
About Resource Service Ministries RSM was founded in 1984 to answer the crying need of widows in the State of Georgia for home and weatherization repairs, as well as economic relief. Since 1984 the ministry has repaired more than 1000 homes, installed more than 200 roofs, replaced and/or repaired over 150 heaters/furnaces and weatherized more than 900 homes, achieving energy savings averaging 30-35 percent. Its economic relief programs have saved elderly Georgians more than $300 million (as of 12/31/04). RSM has three main components to address the needs of elderly, low-income Georgians: 1. Home repair; 2. Weatherization; 3. Economic relief. For more information about Resource Service Ministries, go to www.rsmin.org.
About the Sullivan Center The mission of The Sullivan Center, Inc. (TSC) is to provide help with dignity to families and individuals in crisis. In addition to providing direct financial aid, The Sullivan Center, Inc. empowers people to help themselves through financial planning/nutritional classes and employment counseling. For more information about the Sullivan Center, go to http://www.volunteersolutions.org/uwatl/org/895769.html.
About United Way of Metropolitan Atlanta United Way helps people from every part of our community work together on important human care issues. It is committed to making lasting improvements on those issues. It works to strengthen the everyday support systems of community life - how individuals, families and neighborhoods work to support one another - and is prepared to assist people when those systems alone are not sufficient. United Way's 211is Atlanta's Community Connection. 2-1-1 is your first and best resource to find the help you need, or to help others. For more information about United Way or its 211 program, go to www.unitedwayatlanta.org/211.
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SOURCE: AGL Resources
AGL Resources, Atlanta Media Relations Nick Gold, 404/584-3457 Cell: 404/275 9501 ngold@aglresources.com