Duke Energy Foundation Gives More Than $200,000 to Hunger Relief Programs in Indiana Communities

August 01, 2023 at 10:18 AM EDT

Funding will help 25 nonprofits and organizations increase their capacity to serve Hoosier families impacted by food insecurity

PLAINFIELD, IN / ACCESSWIRE / August 1, 2023 / The Duke Energy Foundation is awarding more than $200,000 in grants to local food pantries and community organizations to feed Hoosier families in need. The grants will support the purchase of canned goods, fresh produce and essential supplies to address food insecurity across the company's Indiana service territory.

"Too many Hoosiers struggle with economic instability and food insecurity," said Stan Pinegar, president of Duke Energy Indiana. "When people don't have enough food to meet their needs or are uncertain of where their next meal might come from, it weighs heavily on families and communities. With these funds, we hope to curb the number of Indiana families experiencing hunger and support local organizations extending a helping hand to their neighbors in need."

The Center for Lay Ministries is the recipient of a $6,000 Duke Energy Foundation grant to support Clark County, Ind., residents who struggle with food insecurity. Each month, the nonprofit organization provides food for more than 1,100 individuals and their families.

"These funds will allow us to meet the increased needs of local families this summer while kids are home from school and food costs are rising," said Kara Brown, executive director of the Center for Lay Ministries. "The support of partners like Duke Energy is instrumental in helping us continue to serve our clients with compassion, dignity and respect."

Grants were awarded to the following organizations:

Anchor House (Jackson County) - $5,000
Center for Lay Ministries (Clark County) - $6,000
Clay County YMCA (Clay County) - $7,000
Food Finders Food Bank (Benton, Carroll, Cass, Fountain, Fulton, Howard, Miami, Montgomery, Tippecanoe, Tipton and Warren counties) - $29,000
Gleaners Food Bank of Indiana (Statewide) - $10,000
Good Samaritan Network of Hamilton County (Hamilton County) - $10,000
Hendricks County Food Pantry Coalition (Hendricks County) - $5,000
Henry County Community Foundation (Henry County) - $5,000 Hoosier Hills Food Bank (Brown, Lawrence, Martin, Monroe, Orange and Owen counties) - $22,000
Hope Center (Fayette County) - $5,000
Hope Southern Indiana (Floyd County) - $6,000
Knox County United Way (Knox County) - $12,000
The Princeton Salvation Army (Gibson County) - $10,000
Putnam County Emergency Food Pantry (Putnam County) - $5,000
The Rescue Mission (Huntington, Kosciusko and Whitley counties) - $5,000
The Salvation Army of Southern Indiana (Clark, Crawford, Floyd, Harrison, Scott and Washington counties) - $10,000
Second Harvest Food Bank of East Central Indiana (Blackford, Delaware, Grant, Henry, Jay, Madison, Randolph and Wabash counties) - $3,000
Shelby County Boys & Girls Club (Shelby County) - $10,000
South Madison Community Food Pantry (Madison County) - $2,500
United Way of Bartholomew County (Bartholomew County) - $12,000
United Way of Clinton County (Clinton County) - $7,000
West Vigo Community Center (Vigo County) - $5,000
Western Indiana Community Foundation (Vermillion County) - $5,000
Westfield Washington Schools (Hamilton County) - $15,000
YMCA of Morgan County (Morgan County) - $7,000

Duke Energy Foundation

The Duke Energy Foundation provides philanthropic support to meet the needs of communities where Duke Energy customers live and work. The Foundation contributes more than $2 million annually in charitable gifts to Indiana and is funded by Duke Energy shareholders. More information about the Foundation can be found at duke-energy.com/foundation.

Duke Energy Indiana

Duke Energy Indiana, a subsidiary of Duke Energy, provides about 6,600 megawatts of owned electric capacity to approximately 890,000 customers in a 23,000-square-mile service area, making it Indiana's largest electric supplier.

Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), a Fortune 150 company headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., is one of America's largest energy holding companies. Its electric utilities serve 8.2 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Indiana, Ohio and Kentucky, and collectively own 50,000 megawatts of energy capacity. Its natural gas unit serves 1.6 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Ohio and Kentucky. The company employs 27,600 people.

Duke Energy is executing an aggressive clean energy transition to achieve its goals of net-zero methane emissions from its natural gas business by 2030 and net-zero carbon emissions from electricity generation by 2050. The company has interim carbon emission targets of at least 50% reduction from electric generation by 2030, 50% for Scope 2 and certain Scope 3 upstream and downstream emissions by 2035, and 80% from electric generation by 2040. In addition, the company is investing in major electric grid enhancements and energy storage, and exploring zero-emission power generation technologies such as hydrogen and advanced nuclear.

Duke Energy was named to Fortune's 2023 "World's Most Admired Companies" list and Forbes' "World's Best Employers" list. More information is available at duke-energy.com. The Duke Energy News Center contains news releases, fact sheets, photos and videos. Duke Energy's illumination features stories about people, innovations, community topics and environmental issues. Follow Duke Energy on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook.

Contact: McKenzie Barbknecht
24-Hour: 800.559.3853

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Duke Energy, Tuesday, August 1, 2023, Press release picture