MEDIA ADVISORY
Navajo Generating Station employees build shed for Page food pantry
The Circle of Page Food Pantry is now able to take in more donations and serve more men, women and children thanks to employees of the Navajo Generating Station (NGS), who took on a volunteer project to build a much-needed storage shed.
NGS employee Debi Marquis applied for a Salt River Project Employee Community Service grant to assist the food pantry and, to her delight, she got the grant. The only caveat was that it needed to be erected by SRP employee volunteers. The call went out to the folks in the NGS maintenance division, and many stepped up to the challenge.
"I was amazed at the response from the volunteers who helped construct this shed for the Food Pantry and in such a short time. They were all awesome," said Marquis, who sits on the Circle of Page board.
The facility, which served more than 6,000 families or more than 21,000 people in 2009, is now able to store more food and non-food items.
"It has made a tremendous difference in how many people we can serve and how much we can store," said Food Pantry Executive Director Jean Keplinger. "Not only are we able to offer food items, but by offering more non-food items our clients are able to buy more groceries for their families."
The Food Pantry serves Page and outlying areas from Marble Canyon and into portions of Utah.
The SRP Employee Community Service Grant program provides funding for employees to volunteer with Arizona nonprofit organizations to carry out defined and tangible projects that will substantially impact the organization. The grants are designed to support SRP's tradition of serving the community as it progresses through a second century of service.
NGS, which serves electric customers in Arizona, Nevada and California, is operated by Phoenix-based SRP.
