Every month, thousands of Piedmont Electric members round their bill up to the nearest dollar. A few cents here, a quarter there. Pooled together through our Helping Hand Foundation, those pennies do real work in our communities.
A Grant That Went Into the Walls
Last year, the Helping Hand Foundation awarded $10,000 to Habitat for Humanity of Orange County to support the organization’s home repair program.
This organization has served the community for more than 40 years. Since 1984, they’ve built more than 350 homes and repaired more than 250 across Orange County. In its most recent fiscal year, it partnered with 16 households on homeownership and 25 more through its home repair program.
Through home preservation programs, Habitat replaces failing roofs, repairs and replaces HVAC systems, fixes siding and exterior doors, and builds accessibility ramps for homeowners who can’t manage the work or the cost on their own. Many are seniors trying to stay in the homes they have lived in for decades. Many are veterans. All of them are our neighbors.
Why Your Co-op Cares
We believe in caring for our community. We also know that there is also a direct line between a well-maintained home and an affordable power bill.
A roof that leaks lets conditioned air out. An HVAC system limping along at the end of its life uses more electricity than necessary. Gaps around old exterior doors quietly drain a household’s budget month after month. When Habitat fixes those things, the homeowner doesn’t just get a safer house, they get a lower bill.
As a cooperative, we’re owned by the people we serve, and helping members save electricity is exactly the outcome we want.
Still Rebuilding After Chantal
The need didn’t stop with the storm. After Tropical Storm Chantal soaked our communities in July 2025, Habitat of Orange County stood up a dedicated disaster repair effort for homeowners with storm damage. Some of those repairs are still underway.
Recovery is not finished even though the lights are back on. For a lot of families, that is when the hardest part starts.
You’re Already Helping
If your bill gets rounded up each month, you’re funding this work right now, and we greatly appreciate your support.
If you aren’t enrolled or would like to do more:
- Round up. If you aren’t enrolled, sign up at smarthub.coop or call 800.222.3107. The average member gives about $6 a year.
- Give directly. Set up a one-time or recurring donation through SmartHub.
- Donate your capital credits. Complete a beneficiary designation form and select the Helping Hand Foundation. Our offices notarize it free of charge.