MiEnergy members give $3,000 to local orgs

CRESCO/Rushford, Minn - MiEnergy Cooperative’s Operation Round Up Trust Board met recently and elected to donate $3,000 to the following local organizations:

• $500, Cresco American Legion Post #135, Cresco, Iowa, to support the development of Freedom Rock Memorial Park honoring veterans and their contributions to this country.

• $500, Riceville Community Club, Riceville, Iowa, to support the Woodland Avenue Pedestrian Sidewalk Lighting Project that will be purchasing and installing 14 new sidewalk lights.

• $1,000, Monster Bash, Harmony, Minn.., to help renovate restrooms for handicap accessibility.

• $500, Commonweal Theatre, Lanesboro, Minn., to support the Student Matinee Series that offers discounts to area high schools for educational opportunities outside of the classroom.

• $500, Houston Arts Resource Council, Houston, Minn., to support the Crystal Creek Citizen-Artist Residency Community Workshop Series, which brings in artists/creative professionals for one-week residencies that include public Q&A sessions and hands on workshops.

Operation Round Up is funded by donations made by members of MiEnergy Cooperative who voluntarily have their electric bill round up to the next dollar. About 1,600 members currently participate with the average donation being $6 a year per member.

“The program is based on the idea that small change adds up. Currently, the program gives away about $9,000 each year to local organizations,” says Brenda Tesch, MiEnergy’s public relations director.

Tesch explains the cooperative continues to work to get the word out about the program because as the number of participants increases, so does the amount the program is able to donate to causes in our local communities.

“If the majority of members participated, we would have nearly $100,000 to grant each year,” Tesch states.

The Operation Round Up Trust Board chooses where the funds get donated and the amount of the donation based on an application process. The trust board members include: Tom Tibor, of Minnesota City, Minn., president; John Bronk, of Winona, Minn., vice president; Margaret Knutson, of Houston, Minn., secretary/treasurer; Larry Hafner, of La Crescent, Minn.; Allen Hanson, of Preston, Minn.; Miriam Harstad, of Harmony, Minn.; Arlene Hegge, of La Crescent, Minn.; Janelle Mahr, of Lime Springs, Iowa; and Shannon Schmelzer, of Cresco, Iowa.

Donations to Operation Round Up are tax deductible. Organizations receive grants through an application process. The next application deadline is Aug. 15. To learn more about Operation Round Up or to round up your electric bill, visit www.MiEnergy.coop or call 1-800-432-2285.

MiEnergy Cooperative is a member-owned electric distribution cooperative and is the result of a merger between Hawkeye REC, of Cresco, Iowa and Tri-County Electric Cooperative, of Rushford, Minn. in 2017. It maintains 5,700 miles of power lines covering most of Fillmore, Houston and Winona counties in Minnesota and Chickasaw, Howard and Winneshiek counties in Iowa.