Tucson, Ariz. – Tucson Electric Power (TEP) contributed nearly $330,000 to 29 nonprofit groups during the second quarter of 2021, with a focus on environmental protection and community support.
We supported drought mitigation, sponsored the development of local pollinator gardens, and backed efforts to refurbish computers and medical equipment for use in the Tucson community instead of disposal in landfills. TEP contributions also funded students’ scientific investigations in fire-damaged areas, engaged youth as stewards of our natural world, and promoted science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) education.
TEP’s philanthropic contributions come from corporate resources and are not recovered through customers’ rates. Our community partners use our contributions to sustain programs with measurable success built over many years.
Our donations during the second quarter months of 2021 included:
- A total of $125,000 for environmental groups including the Sky Island Alliance, the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum, Tohono Chul Park, Reid Park Zoo, Cooper Center for Environmental Education, Arizona Community Tree Council, Sonoran Institute, Arizona Trail Association, Tucson Botanical Gardens, National Forest Foundation, and several others.
- $40,000 to STEMAZing Institute, which provides teachers with hands-on, engaging lessons to strengthen the quality of STEM education.
- $30,000 to the Nature Conservancy for its Power of Nature Campaign. This includes funds provided through TEP Gives (more details below).
- $25,000 to the Women’s Foundation of Southern Arizona for a new program providing financial support to organizations led by and serving women and girls of color.
- $25,000 to the Diaper Bank of Southern Arizona to support families with potty-training to keep diapers out of landfills.
“We know that a vibrant quality of life and a robust economy rely on clean air and a strong environment,” said Wendy Erica Werden, TEP’s Manager of Community Investment. “As a company, we’re focused on accelerating the transition to cleaner energy for a better future for all of us. But as members of our community, we’re also invested in supporting our partners in their efforts to work toward a more sustainable environment and protect the place we all live.”
Our TEP customers also did their part to improve the livability of our community. We donated to the Nature Conservancy every time customers signed up for Budget Billing, e-Bill or Auto Pay in the second quarter, topping out at $20,000, as part of TEP’s new pilot program – TEP Gives. This amount was in addition to TEP’s $10,000 donation to The Nature Conservancy for its Power of Nature campaign, to which TEP has pledged a total of $50,000 over five years.
“TEP’s support helps us accelerate efforts to combat heat issues in our cities, unhealthy air quality and fire mitigation in a really challenging year. With this partnership, and so many individuals who were attracted to this campaign, together we are ensuring Arizona is a place where people and nature thrive,” said Dan Stellar, state director of The Nature Conservancy Arizona.
Our company focuses on low-income community support in the first and fourth quarters of the year, environment and sustainability in the second quarter, and education in the third quarter, with a focus on social equity throughout the year.
In 2020, we assisted 210 charities through financial donations, in-kind support and the contributions of employee volunteers. Although the pandemic limited our ability to attend in-person events last year, our volunteers contributed more than 6,800 hours to support important causes. In a typical year, about 25 percent of our employees volunteer in our community, often while wearing our trademark blue TEP volunteer shirts.
Some of organizations and community projects we support are chosen by TEP’s Community Action Team, an employee-led committee that organizes volunteer and donation activities to benefit the causes closest to their hearts.
Organizations that may be interested in funding, in-kind assistance and volunteers are encouraged to review details on at tep.com/community, however, donations are made primarily through an invitation by TEP to apply. Learn more about our community involvement and donations.
TEP provides safe, reliable electric service to more than 433,000 customers in Southern Arizona. For more information, visit tep.com. TEP and its parent company, UNS Energy, are subsidiaries of Fortis Inc. (NYSE: FTS), which owns utilities that serve more than 3 million customers across Canada and in the United States and the Caribbean. For more information, visit fortisinc.com.
News Media Contact:
Joseph Barrios
(520) 884-3725
jbarrios@tep.com
